The Diocese of Bath and Wells
Through our network of people, parishes, schools and churches, the Church of England Diocese of Bath and Wells is supporting and resourcing confident Christian communities across Somerset. The Diocese stretches from Portishead in the north to Crewkerne in the south, Minehead in the west to Frome in the east. Together we serve nearly 1,000,000 people.
Our diocesan vision is ‘In response to God’s immense love for us, we seek to be God’s people, living and telling the story of Jesus’. We place mission and evangelism at the heart of everything we do, and seek to help identify, develop and release the gifts of all people. Our desire for the church is to be a significant presence in the local community we serve, understanding its needs and helping the church to grow by showing the relevance of the Gospel.
We support and encourage parishes and deaneries to work and develop in varied and diverse ways, supporting the emergence of new and creative patterns of ministry. The diocese has an innovative pioneering project which seeks to reach communities where the church has little impact and in the past five years chaplaincy in Bath and Wells has grow from 100 to over 150 chaplaincies
As a diocese, we take our responsibility for the environment seriously. In 2020 we adopted a new Diocesan Environment and Climate Change policy, and we are committed to achieving ‘net zero’ carbon emissions by 2030.
It is an exciting new time for the diocese as we look forward to welcoming Rt Revd Michael Beasley as the 80th Bishop of Bath and Wells. Bishop Michael joins us from the Diocese of St Albans where he is Bishop of Hertford. He will be installed at Wells Cathedral in autumn 2022. He succeeds Bishop Peter who retired May 2021 due to ill health.
A copy of the diocesan statement of needs can be found here: