Cathedral Council and the Community

Last year Parliament passed the Cathedrals Measure 2021 which requires all Cathedrals to re-organise their governance, and to become charities answerable to the Charity Commission.  Our Dean and Chapter have been hard at work on the required changes and, with the Council, have been completely revising the existing Constitution and Statutes (C&S) of the Cathedral to comply with the new Act.   We are therefore currently in a period of transition.   The Cathedral Council is required, during this transition period, to ensure that the new C&S meet the needs of the Cathedral, and the requirements of the Act and the Church Commissioners, who are overseeing this exercise for all Cathedrals.  We will in due course publish the new C&S and seek comments from the Cathedral Community. Once the C&S are finalised and passed then the Council will, by the terms of the Cathedrals Measure 2021, cease to exist.  It is envisaged that our work will be completed by the end of 2022.

This means that recruiting new members of Council as terms expire is not easy, when there is only a short time for anyone new to be a member. In those circumstances most members of Council who were appointed by the Bishop, have with the Bishop’s blessing, when their terms of office have expired, agreed to remain in post for another year.

The term of office of one of the members of the Council elected by the Community, Paul Wing, expires this year and we consider it would be sensible for him to continue in post for up to a year to see through the finalisation of the new C&S.  In our view Paul has served the Council loyally for many years and happily he is willing to serve up to another year to complete the task required of Council.  In these circumstances the Dean and Chapter have agreed that at the Community Annual Meeting on 25^th September 2022 Paul will be up for election by the Cathedral Community and I would very much hope that, in the very unusual position in which we find ourselves, the Community will elect Paul to continue in post for up to a year. Should you, however, wish to nominate yourself or anyone else to stand, please send the name with a supporting signed document from a Proposer and Seconder to enquiries@winchester-cathedral.org.uk by Friday 16th September 2022.  An election will then take place by a show of hands at the Community Annual Meeting on 25th September 2022.

                                                                   Jean Ritchie QC

                                                                   Chair of the Cathedral Council