Dr Ben Walker will join Team Leader the Revd John Lee to oversee the ‘Growth Fund’ making grants possible across the Diocese to enable lay people to lead the creation of New Worshipping Communities focused on those in their 20s-40s.
Ben (pictured right) is a Senior Leader at G2 York, an innovative, creative and missional fresh expression of church particularly reaching younger adults; with his wife Holly, Ben is also the Service Leader for G2 City which is one of G2’s two sites.
This role has given Ben invaluable experience in pioneer ministry in the Church of England, and he is also one of the leaders of ‘Grit’, a regular men’s ministry which has focused on growing discipleship for younger adult men.
Ben holds an MPhil in African Studies and a BA in History from the University of Cambridge, and recently completed his PhD in History at the University of York where he is also a Teaching Fellow. Funded by the Wellcome Trust, he conducted original research across the world into Christian mission and healthcare in Ghana since 1919, and he presented his findings in the USA, China and at the World Council of Churches in Geneva.
Ben and Holly both grew up in Leeds, met in a choir at St Aidan’s Church of England High School in Harrogate and now live in York; Holly is currently in the leadership academy of the NHS.