Elizabeth Marshall is a long standing member of the NDN Steering Group taking an active role in organising the national conferences; co-ordinating and liasing with speakers. 
Elizabeth playing an active part in the deanery – Tower Hamlets – in the Diocese of London.
Andrew Wilkinson is Area Dean of Garstang Deanery in the Diocese of Blackburn.
Olaitan Fatoye is Laychair of the Plumstead Deanery in the Diocese of Southwark.
Joyce Forbes is Area Dean of Croydon North in the Diocese of Southwark.
B
ex is lay chair of the diocese of Southwark, and lay chair of the Lambeth North Deanery, and also a member of the Southwark Diocese Council of Trustees.
She is also a member of the General Synod, and Vice Chair of Christians in Media and executive producer of its Faith in Media podcast. She is a non-executive director of The Tablet magazine, and writes a monthly column on culture for the Church of England Newspaper.
Having read theology at university, Bex has held roles ranging from management and administration to fundraising and communications, including working for two Archbishops of Canterbury, as well as working as part of the Government Communications Service and various charities.
She has three very lively young sons, and cycles most places! One of her favourite things to do is get together Anglicans from different places, spaces and traditions, whether that’s at a deanery level or just for drinks in the bar at General Synod.
I joined the National Deaneries Network over 15 years ago and had the privilege of working as part of the team over many conferences. I am a Parish Priest having served 12 years in the diocese of Bath and Wells, 6 of those years as a Rural Dean and then ten years in the diocese of Newcastle 5 of those again as an Area Dean.I now serve are the Rector of Sherborne Abbey in the Salisbury diocese.
I became Chair of the Network some four years ago and greatly value the opportunity of working with our team as we seek to find new ways in which we can reach out to the many dioceses of our Church and serve them promoting and encouraging the work of deaneries. At this exciting time with the Renewal and Reform agenda utmost in our minds, I perceive the role of the deanery ever more critical as we seek to empower all both laity and clergy to be enlivened by God’s love and to respond generously to him and his Church.
Alastair had the value and importance of Deaneries impressed on him by the priest who took his wedding. Having had long term experience in 5 deaneries in Doncaster and Sheffield, Uxbridge, Copthorne and then Henfield in Sussex, as Archdeacon of Lewisham & Greenwich from 2013, he had a close working relationship with the 6 deaneries in Lewisham & Greenwich Archdeaconry in Southwark. He took up his current role as Bishop of Woolwich in 2024.
Alastair is married to Kay, a teacher of children with profound and multiple learning difficulties and special needs, and they have two grown up daughters – Hannah and Laura – as well as a black Labrador called Maia.
John (or Tug as he is known in church circles) Wilson stepped down recently after serving as Lay Chair of the Lichfield Diocese for 15 years. He is a member of General Synod and has served as a Churchwarden and was Lay Chair of the Lichfield Deanery for over 20 years. He is one of the longest serving members (almost 30 years) on the Steering Group for the National Deaneries Network. For over 10 years now he has looked after the marketing and bookings for the NDN Conferences as well as over seeing the finances.
Tug is passionate about the role of the Deanery. He sees the Deanery as a key element in co-ordinating and deploying resources and supporting Parishes and Dioceses in their task of mission and evangelism. He speaks at events – particularly Deanery and Diocesan Synods – on the role and opportunities for Deaneries. He often comments that if you cut him he bleeds Deanery Blood!
With the publication of the Setting God’s People Free report Setting God’s People Free Tug took a lead in briefing and encouraging Deaneries to become engines of change in culture to enable lay and clergy to work together to support and give lay people confidence to be disciples in their Monday to Saturday lives.
Tug and his wife Ann have been married for over 50 years and have two sons. Andrew is married to Sarah and have provided two grandchildren – Alf an
d Issy. Their other son Steve is a preparing to be a Crown Prosecutor and is content to be single.
Away from church Tug is an award winning chef however, he is better known as a Social Entrepreneur. He has spent almost 40 years working with charities and voluntary groups with a particular emphasis on Social Enterprise. He has headed up a number of Charities and, as a consultant, has set up significant Social Enterprises providing services for Older People and other vulnerable groups and food redistribution. For five years he chaired a National Working Party for the Department of Work and Pensions on Older people and Exclusion.
Amongst all of this Tug has found time to set up and run online businesses and develop mobile and online management information and data systems.
Music and singing has always played a key part in relaxing. This has included recording and touring both at home and aboard with pro/am musicals. He now sings with the Lichfield Gospel Choir. With over 100 voices the choir has performed in some of the worlds most prestige venues.
Tim is the full-time Area Dean of Milton Keynes, a role focussed on Church growth and the Common Good. He is passionate about collaborative ministry and social justice.
He is chair of Refugees Welcome MK which has welcomed twelve families into Milton Keynes as part of the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme.
He has a particular interest in community organising and is co-chair of Citizens MK and Citizens UK. He says that organising has given him the most moving, exiciting and effective experiences of ministry.
As a member of the NDN Steering Group he has contributed to the design of the logo and web site and supported Tug with the AV work at the conference. He hopes that the NDN will grow as a network and become more active between conferences.
