We are a small team, ordained and lay, sharing in the life and worship of St James the Less as part of the Benfleet, Thundersley and Hadleigh (BTH) Team Ministry. Any of us would be glad to hear from you.
Revd Mark Smeed – Minister
Mark is Minister to St James the Less and St Barnabas, and lives in Hadleigh with his young family. He is also Chaplain to the Mayor of Castle Point. He is passionate about seeing people grow in their faith, and about supporting the young, the vulnerable and the elderly in our community. He longs to see the Hadleigh churches go from strength to strength.
Mark has a deep love of Anglo-Catholic worship, formed during his time at All Saints, Cranham. His years at St Andrew’s, Hornchurch, and at St George’s and St Matthew’s gave him a good understanding of the middle of the Church of England, and his time at the Good Shepherd, Collier Row, grounded him in evangelical worship. Before that he was youth minister at City Gates Christian Centre, an Elim church, where he helped a number of young people grow into leadership.
Mark was a director of a small web development and hosting business, and ran schemes helping young people start out in enterprise. As a busy parent himself, he knows the pressures of everyday life and how hard it can be to balance work, family and faith.
His favourite passage is 1 Peter 2:9–10: “Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people.” It speaks to him of how God adopts us as his children, whatever our past — a past that is not ignored, but accepted and, where needed, forgiven. We have always been loved, cared for and cherished.
Mark loves the community of Hadleigh: its readiness to support one another, to come together and to grow together. Away from church you are likely to find him walking the dog, taking photographs or painting miniature models for Warhammer.
Revd Jan Kersey – Curate
Jan is a curate in the BTH Team, in the early years of ordained ministry, and leads worship and takes services at St James.
Sheena Slater – Licensed Lay Minister
Sheena is a Licensed Lay Minister, licensed by the Bishop to lead worship and preach. She also represents St James on the Hadleigh Deanery Synod.
The wider team
Revd Pete Hillman (Team Leader and Area Dean) and Revd Marcus Giddy (Associate Priest) share in ministry across all the BTH churches.