The Revd Canon Dr Neil Evans
In my Lent letter I shared our developing vision and strategy as we look forward to a new season at the Cathedral. Since then, we have enjoyed an exciting and fruitful Holy Week and Easter, started the process for appointing a new Dean and a new Chief Operating Officer, welcomed the amazing Threads through the Bible exhibition and begun to explore ways to address our significant structural deficit. I am very pleased to bring you up to date on these and other developments at Southwell Minster.
Holy Week and Easter
Holy Week once again brought us to focus on the events at the centre of our faith, of the death and resurrection of Christ, and the gospel message of new life. From Palm Sunday, when for the first time we were able to process right down Halam Road and Queen Street with people from across the churches of Southwell, through the great Liturgies of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter, to a big, celebratory Cathedral Eucharist on Easter Day, it was great to be able to share together in the most important services of the Church’s year. Thank you to all those who made it possible. A particular highlight this year was Choral Evensong for Wednesday in Holy Week, which was broadcast live on BBC Radio Three, and is still available at www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0029ptl; if you haven’t heard it, do listen and marvel at the wonderful sound our Cathedral Choir makes.
Restructuring
A major consultation with staff has just concluded, with significant extremely helpful contributions from congregation members and volunteers. Chapter is exploring a wide variety of ways in which we might reduce costs, whilst continuing to deliver the high level of service to the Cathedral congregation and visitors. As with any serious consultation, a large number of issues have been raised which help us to consider the next steps.
The headline from the consultation process is that there are unlikely to be redundancies in the immediate future, but that some excellent alternative and complementary proposals are being discussed with staff which will lead both to financial savings and to providing a refreshed approach to our provisions.
With the significant structural deficit that the Cathedral is carrying, this consultation is one important part of a whole strategy to explore ways of reducing costs, as well as increasing income. We are acutely aware that there is no silver bullet, but that we need to look at every aspect of Cathedral life.
Property Master Planning
Another significant area of exploration to address our financial situation is our property portfolio. The portfolio is currently a significant financial drain. As has already been mentioned, with a grant from the Church Commissioners we have employed a project management firm to engage various specialist advisors to assess our property and its current uses and to offer an options appraisal for Chapter to consider. The first meeting of the Project Board has taken place, and the early signs are promising, although recognising the complexity of the current situation. There are no quick fixes, but the clear goal is for our property and associated assets and services to be a source of improved revenue rather than the current financial burden.
We have encouraged our project managers to take a holistic approach, importantly taking into account our role as Cathedral for the Diocese, Parish Church, heritage centre and arts venue. We hope to receive their initial findings by the summer with options to be discussed by Chapter in the autumn.
Threads through the Bible
We have been blessed over Lent and Easter with a wonderful exhibition of textile art by Jacqui Parkinson. It brings together 10 years of Jacqui’s remarkable work, covering Creation, Cross and Revelation. The exhibition has attracted thousands of visitors and has offer a wonderful background for our liturgy and worship over Holy Week and Easter. We are sad to see it go.
In September we will be welcoming The Longest Yarn 2: Britain at War.
VE Day Celebrations
Special services for the coming month include an Evensong in celebration of the 80th anniversary of VE Day, taking place on Sunday 11 May at 3.30pm, when we will be joined by groups representing a wide cross-section of Nottinghamshire, as well as by the Lord-Lieutenant, the Royal British Legion, and Bishop Paul, who will be preaching. This is a service for everyone, please do come and join us.
Thy Kingdom Come
As we journey through Eastertide, we look forward to celebrating the Feasts of The Ascension and Pentecost. We are delighted that this year, the Minster will join with all church denominations across Southwell, as well as St Michael’s in Farnsfield and some from the Jubilee House Diocesan Support team, for ‘Thy Kingdom Come’: ten days of continuous 24-7 prayer from Thursday 29th May to Saturday 7th June. To facilitate this, ‘The Lighthouse’ Prayer Centre has been created temporarily in the Wheatsheaf Pub in the centre of Southwell, and we hope people from every church will book a slot and come together in prayer. These 10 days culminate with the Minster hosting a special co-led ecumenical service of Celebration and Thanksgiving on Pentecost Sunday 8th June at 9:30am. Please do consider booking a slot in the Lighthouse Prayer Centre – perhaps coming as a small group or bringing a friend (Please email diddy@diddywheldon.co.uk to book an hour slot, referencing ’24-7 Prayer’ in the email title) and we hope to see you at the Pentecost morning service.
New Dean Appointment
The search for a new Dean of Southwell has begun with a recruitment panel chaired by the Lord Lieutenant. The aim is to advertise the post before the summer with interviews taking place in late September. We might expect the successful candidate to begin early in the New Year.
Chief Operating Officer
We have been very fortunate to have had the services of David Coulthard as our interim Chief Operating Officer since the summer of last year. As David lives in Winchester, we have always known that this would be interim, and he has now secured an excellent post much closer to home. He will be leading a Health -related charity based in Salisbury. David will be leaving us in mid-June. I am hugely grateful to him for stepping into the breech, giving of his significant experience and helping to lead the Cathedral towards the next phase in its history.
I have already started the process of recruitment for a new permanent COO and we are aiming to have appointed to this crucial role by the summer.
Visitor Attraction of the Year!
And finally… we won!
In April, we were delighted to be named Nottinghamshire Visitor Attraction of the Year 2025. This prestigious award is a tribute to the passion, creativity and dedication of our staff, our volunteers and the wider Southwell Minster community. We are especially proud to be recognised as a place where heritage, spirituality and imagination come together in ways that resonate with visitors of all ages. At the heart of everything we do is a warm, heartfelt and prayerful welcome, whether our visitors are attending worship, seeking quiet reflection, enjoying a family day out, or coming to one of our many concerts and events. Thank you to every one of you who contributes to the extraordinary living spirit reflecting God’s presence in our Cathedral: together we will continue to inspire, uplift, and bring people together. And now we have a trophy to prove it!
With every blessing for this Eastertide,
Alleluia! Christ is Risen!
Neil Evans
6th May 2025