Please find below an introduction to our church leaders and members of staff.

		Simon grew up in Devon and moved to Yorkshire with his wife in 2008. He is deeply passionate about the local church and believes that God still moves today as He has done throughout history. Before being ordained he worked for 12 years in Damart in various departments. He plays guitar, loves movies and reading, and has 2 children.
Vicar Rev Simon Phipps

Church Warden Neil Whitaker		Church Warden Jayne Robinson
Neil is originally from Halifax but has lived in Silsden since 1995, being a member of the congregation at St James, Silsden since 1998. Neil has recently retired from the legal profession, in Leeds. He plays the keyboard for our 11.00 service and is a Home Group Leader.		Jayne was born in Keighley and grew up in Silsden where she was confirmed at St James at the age of 12. She has worked at Airedale Hospital most of her working life mainly as a medical secretary. She enjoys working with Churches Together in Silsden and Contact Club.


Deputy Church Warden Brian Goddard		Verger Alison Winstanley
Brian has been a member of St James since 2015. He is married to Val and has 2 grown up children and 5 grandchildren. He has led the fundraising campaign for Project 200+, is a Home Group leader and is particularly interested in Bible teaching and understanding the links between Old and New Testament.		Alison has worshipped at St James since she came to live in Silsden in 1997. She is the verger, helping the clergy at weddings and funerals. She also co-leads our lively Wednesday House Group on Zoom and the Bible Course, and has helped run numerous Alpha courses.


		Deborah Thorley
		Deborah was born in England’s smallest county Rutland and lived in Suffolk and Lancashire until she moved to Yorkshire to study in 1986. Deborah is a church bell ringer, and that is what brought her to St James’. She was asked to be the tower captain when the bells were rehung in 2001. Since coming to church at St James, Deborah has been confirmed, has been the PCC Treasurer since 2006 and the church administrator since 2013.

If you need to contact the Church then please visit the Contact Us page.

Hello and welcome to our church. If you are a new visitor, we have a page for you to get to know us and learn more about planning a visit.
Click here to see more.

Visitors click here.

Planning your Visit

A Warm Hello

The following information is specifically for those planning a visit, so that you know, beforehand, what to expect on a Sunday morning.

Where and When

We meet at the Church Building (details here) for our Sunday Service starting at 10am. For your first visit, we recommend arriving 10-15 minutes early to ensure you get a parking space and find somewhere to sit before the service begins. When you arrive, you should be greeted by someone on our Welcome Team who will be wearing a Welcome lanyard.

We serve tea, coffee and biscuits from 10am, before the service begins. It is a great way to meet people, or simply take time to find your bearings. All refreshments are free.

Accessibility: There is wheelchair access, and a sound loop for anyone who needs it. Please let one of the Welcome Team know on your arrival and they will help you to get set up. There are disabled toilets in the main foyer.

Our Service

The main service begins at 10am with a warm welcome from one of our team members. Then follows a time of sung worship, led by our band. We typically have 2 or 3 songs lasting approximately 20 minutes. Sometimes a person might pray out loud or read a small passage from the bible. Sometimes people share things that they believe God is saying to the whole church family. This might seem strange the first time you hear it but it’s all part of our connecting with God. We then share news and notices, usually about what’s going on in the life of the church. One of our leaders will then give a sermon that is bible based and that we can apply to our everyday life. We then finish with a final worship song. Sometimes there is an opportunity to receive prayer at the end of the service.

images: Services

What about my kids?

We have a great programme lined up for kids of all ages:

Creche (0 months to 3 years). Children under 6 months are welcome but must be accompanied by their parent/grown-up at all times.
Livewires (3-7 years)
Encounter (7-11 years)
Katalyst (11-15 years)
Young people (15+ years) Stay in service.

Children stay with their parent or grown-up at the start of the service for the welcome, songs and notices. We really value worshipping God all together as a family. At the end of the notices someone will announce that it’s time for the younger members to go to their various groups. You will need to go with your children to their groups and register them as part of our child safety policy. Whilst you are dropping your kids off at their groups, we pause to take time to chat to someone sitting near or next to us, giving folk a chance to come back before the sermon begins.

The kids group activities vary depending on the age but usually there is a friendly welcome, bible stories, testimonies, praying, music, craft, drama, fun games and free play. Please pick your children up as soon as the service finishes.

Getting Connected

Small Groups

While Sundays are a great way to meet new people, it is often in smaller gatherings that you can really get to know someone. Being part of one of our small groups allows you to make new friends, share together and support each other. We have a variety of groups that meet throughout the week, some afternoons and some evenings. Check out Small Groups and see if there’s one that you could join, or we can put you in touch with a small group leader who will be more than happy to invite you along to their group.

Serving and Volunteering

If you want to get involved in the life of the church and help us make Sundays run smoothly, you can sign up to serve on a team.

Other Ministries

We also run the following ministries:

Men's Ministries
Women's Ministries
Night Shelter
Foodbank

Get in touch with us to plan your visit

If you would like to come and visit the church beforehand you are more than welcome! Get in touch and we can arrange a time that suits you.

Name:

Telephone:

Email Address:
Comments / Questions or anything you would like to say?

Next, we will contact you by email to say hello and help arrange anything necessary for your visit.

Leadership


Leader 1		Leader 2
Leader Intro		Leader Intro

We hope that whoever you are, you will feel at home at our church.

Best Wishes

(Handwritten Signature)