The Very Reverend Tim Barker, Rector of St Andrews since November 2025, will retire on 31 July 2026.Although the date on which Tim's retirement will take effect is 31 July, he will be concluding his public ministry in Guernsey with a service at St Andrew's church at 10.00 am on Sunday 28 June. Because of a shortage of clergy in Guernsey who are able to take services during the vacancy that will follow Tim's departure, there will be some changes to the weekly pattern of services at St Andrew's church. Whilst the service at 10.00 am on Sundays will continue, the 8.00 am service will be suspended until further notice after the service on 28 June. The Revd Canon Jon Honour will be acting Dean following Tim Barker's retirement. He will endeavour to ensure the continuing provision of retired clergy and others who will offer ministry at St Andrew's church. Canon Honour will be working with church officers to consider the future provision of ministry at St Andrew's church - and the other churches in Guernsey which are currently without rectors. However, final decisions are not likely to be made until the arrival of the new Dean, in the autumn of 2026.
The Very Reverend Tim Barker, Rector of St Andrews since November 2025, will retire on 31 July 2026.Tim and Judy Barker (pictured above) will leave Guernsey and return to England following Tim's retirement. Although the date on which Tim's retirement will take effect is 31 July, he will be concluding his public ministry in Guernsey with a service at St Andrew's church at 10 am on Sunday 28 June. Tim said, 'Ministry in Guernsey for nearly eleven years has been a huge privilege. In addition to my main role as Dean of Guernsey, I am pleased that I have also been Rector of St Andrew - although very conscious that I have not always been able to devote as much time to the parish as I would have liked. St Andrew's church, and especially her people, will hold a special place in my heart. 'I am grateful to all whose who, over the years, have invited me to baptise their children or officiate at the marriages or blessings of the marriages. It has been a special joy to officiate at baptisms of children of parents who have been married at St Andrew's church. It has also been a privilege to officiate at the funerals of many people over the years I have served here.'I am pleased that we have prepared for the development of St Andrew's church, following the eventual sale of the Rectory, and the release of funds that the parish has agreed can be used both for the conversion of the Barn into a Rectory and for the long-overdue improvement of access into the church, and the provision of facilities at the church which will replace those lost by the conversion of the Barn. Sadly, we have not been able to undertake this work before my departure, but I will watch the development of the church and the Barn with interest from afar. 'St Andrew's church has been well served by its officers, churchwardens, musicians and treasurers, flower arrangers, cleaners and many more - and by the members of the Parochial Church Property Management Board for the parish. I have much appreciate the relationship with parish constables and members of the parish douzaine over the years.'
The new charity law in Guernsey requires all charitable organisations, including churches, to have constitutional documents that meet the minimum standards set out in the schedule to the Regulations (see below). As Guernsey is not part of the UK, the Church of England's Church Representation Rules and other legislation governing how parishes are managed do not apply in Guernsey. Therefore, the Deanery of Guernsey has produced a model constitution for our parishes to adapt to describe their local arrangements. Mr Howard Roberts KC OBE, until recently one of our churchwardens and formerly HM Procureur, has produced the constitution for St Andrew's parish church, which was presented for adoption by the annual congregational meeting on Sunday 30 April 2023. Why is this necessary?Spurred on by the need to bring its regulation into line with international norms on anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism, Guernsey introduced new charities legislation on 29 April 2022 redefining charities and non-profit organisations under Guernsey law, setting out criteria to determine which of them are required to be registered on the Register of Charities and other Non Profit Organisations, and laying out the governance and risk mitigation measures that such organisations are required to implement.There are three pieces of legislation which apply in Guernsey :The Charities etc (Guernsey and Alderney) Ordinance, 2021 ('the Ordinance'), which repealed and replaced the existing regime. The Ordinance provides the definitions of charities and non-profit organisations ('NPOs'), and sets the thresholds for which charities and NPOs are required to be registered on the Register of Charities and other Non Profit Organisations;The Charities etc (Amendments, Exemptions, Governance and Specified Amount) (Guernsey and Alderney) Regulations, 2022 ('the Regulations'). The Regulations provide various exemptions from the requirement to be registered, and set out the good governance and risk mitigation measures registered charities and NPOs have to implement; andThe Charities etc (Commencement and Transitional Provisions) (Guernsey and Alderney) Regulations, 2022, which sets out the phased timetable of implementation of the Ordinance and Regulations
