The Benefice Ministry Team

Our Rector

We have begun our search for a new rector.
The Profile can be accessed here.

Please pray for the search and for those who will apply and the person who will be our Rector in a few months time.

The Associate Rector

The Revd Canon Dr Phil Groves

Phil is celebrating 10 years in our benefice. He leads the congregations in Cuddington, Stone and Dinton. He loves storytelling for people of all ages.
Phil is dyslexic and a founder of the Diocese of Oxford Neurodiversity forum. He serves on the Church of England Neurodiversity Working Group.
In addition to 20 years in parish ministry, Phil taught in a Tanzanian Theological College and worked for ten years at the Anglican Communion Office, initially enabling listening to LGBTQI+ people and latterly in reconciliation. He edited The Anglican Communion and Homosexuality and co-authored Living Reconciliation – a book highly commended by Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
He continues to write and has published chapters two books this year: Evangelical and Inclusive and an upcoming book in honour of Archbishop Thabo Makgoba. He also blogs at Via Media and is a regular contributor to The Preacher.

Associate Minister – Haddenham

Revd Sue Hughes

Sue completed her curacy at St Mary’s Church, Princes Risborough, before coming to St Mary’s Haddenham as Associate Minister in July 2025. She has a particular passion for helping people encounter Jesus in ways that connect with everyday life and real questions. As a pioneer minister, Susan enjoys exploring fresh and creative ways of communicating the Gospel for our local context, while remaining deeply rooted in prayer, Scripture, and the life of the church. She has a heart for building welcoming communities where faith can be explored, nurtured, and lived out together.

Associate Minister (House for Duty) – Cuddington

Revd Tracey Jones (known as TJ)

As a Navy-trained nurse, TJ worked for many years in Accident and  Emergency and
has seen life in all its colour and chaos and cared for those in their first moments of
life and their last. She has lived in places as far-flung as Kiribati in the South Pacific,
the Falklands in the South Atlantic and Gibraltar, the most southerly tip of Europe.
TJ is delighted to be leading the congregation in Cuddington, as we equip and
encourage the pastoral care of our congregation and home groups, grow our youth
and children’s work and develop our Sunday services in creative ways.

In short:

• TJ tries to “Make a difference” and “Be the best kind of me I can be.”
•  Aims to treat people with “dignity at all times.”
• Values integrity, compassion, kindness and loyalty.
• Loves being creative (especially in worship) but is not at all artistic.

Hobbies include Church bellringing, playing guitar, multi-sports, camping and cycling.

Revd Jonathan Hawkins:

Jonathan, a retired Chartered Surveyor is an Associate Minister living in Haddenham with a focus on Kingsey and Haddenham and has served across the benefice since Sept. 2010. He is currently also Area Dean for Aylesbury.

Revd Trish Mander:

Trish and her husband Alan have lived and worshipped in Haddenham since 1979, and have raised their family here. Trish went on to work in education and later to be ordained in 2013. Since ordination her ministry has been mainly focussed in Haddenham and Kingsey. She is trained in spiritual direction and is passionate about the power of listening, both to God and one another, and letting God’s word inform and nourish the realities of everyday life, it’s changes and challenges.

Revd Nigel Featherston:

Nigel was ordained in 2017 and priested in 2018 having previously been a licensed lay minister in the benefice. Now retired from secular work, Nigel is an Associate Minister with a focus on Dinton where he lives, Stone and Cuddington.

Revd Mike Bisset

I was born and brought up in West London and had had a conversion experience at a School Christian Union Camp at the age of 13.  I joined the Ministry of Defence (as a civilian) straight from school and worked mainly in Whitehall for 22 years.
After marriage we moved to Harrow and were involved in a Church plant where I lead worship, preached, led a Home Group, etc for many years.
At the age of 40 I felt a call to ministry and trained on the North Thames Ministerial Training course.  I was ordained at St Paul’s Cathedral in 1999 and served a 4 year curacy in Ickenham before taking up appointment as Vicar of Penn & Tylers Green (two village parishes nestled between Beaconsfield and High Wycombe).
I retired 4 years ago and moved to Haddenham, where we are near our 5 grandchildren.
I have been strongly influenced by the Charismatic movement from my teenage years and would describe myself as a charismatic evangelical on the moderate end of the scale.
Interests are boating, car maintenance and looking for creative ways to express the Gospel to this current generation.

Ven Dr Gordon Kuhrt

Gordon retired to Haddenham in 2012. He regularly takes services and preaches in Cuddington and Haddenham.

Revd Des Foote

Des moved into Haddenham a couple of years ago. He was ordained in 1982 and is higly valued as a story teller.
He leads worship and preaches in Haddenham.

 

LLM Richard Smith

I have lived in the benefice and have attended Stone and Dinton churches since 2018.  I was an ophthalmologist in the NHS for 40 years, retiring fully in 2024.  I started training as a Licensed Lay Minister (Reader) in Oxford Diocese from 2021 and was licensed in 2024.  I mainly assist Canon Phil Groves by taking services and preaching in Stone and Dinton, but occasionally elsewhere in the benefice, as needed.  I am also an organist, playing regularly at Sunday services, and for musical assemblies at Stone school during term times.  I am married to Sue, who is an ordained prison chaplain.

Authorised Preachers

Additionally we are blessed with a number of authorised preachers:
Andy Hardy, Tim Shaw, David Pickup, Markus Bockmuehl and Simon Barratt (training as an LLM).