People

The Church Team

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 A headline in a Church Times article on 20th July 2018 ran:

“Clergy should refuse to be indispensable”

Building Teams to carry out Ministry is better for the health of the incumbent and the parish….

Four months ago All Saints had already taken the first steps in establishing Teams to cover different areas of church life. Each Team is made up of members of the congregation and of the wider community and is co-chaired by a female and male lead. The Teams in brief are:

Ministry – the Lead Team (with representation from each of the other Teams) responsible
for the services of worship and for strengthening our links within the parish as a whole

Children, youth and music – responsible for the monthly Family Service, for Sunday School
and for the range of music and activities available to young people.

Choir – responsible for the development of our robed choir which sings at all the main
annual festivals in the Christian calendar.

Church, Hall and Audit – responsible for the maintenance and hire of the Church and Hall and for the finances

Gardens – responsible for the maintenance of the Memorial Garden and for the
development of three other gardens near the Church and Hall with community involvement

Communications, Events and Fundraising – responsible for events such as the Family Fun
Day and Michaelmas Fair and for raising funds to enable us to deliver what we offer

The overall aim of our Teams is simply to transform All Saints New Eltham “from a
community gathered around a Minister to a ministering community.” *

*(Acknowledgement: Church Times article 20/7/18 written by Rev’d Andy Griffiths, author of “Refusing to be Indispensable”)

Introducing the team

Vicar: Rev’d Annette Rose

I have been Vicar of All Saints New Eltham since 2009 where I live with my husband, David and our two boys, Richard and Matthew. It is a community which I am proud to be a part of, sharing God’s love with those around us and serving his church in this place.


My father was a Vicar serving Parishes in Caterham, Abbey Wood and Sydenham. From the age of eight I have sung in a church choir and love all kinds of church music from Gregorian chant to more modern Christian groups such as Delirious and Casting Crowns. I began my working life in WH Smiths where I worked for seven years in many branches across London. I subsequently moved to Canterbury to work for SPCK, an Anglican Mission Society, to run their Canterbury bookshop and then coordinate their work across the south east.


I was ordained as Curate of Barham, Bishopsbourne, Kingston and Womenswold in 2004 and then, in 2007, I became Priest in Charge of Wingham, Preston, Elmstone & Stourmouth, before I was appointed to All Saints New Eltham.

Reader: Rita Mather

While I was at St. Luke’s, Charlton the Vicar there suggested that I became a Reader. He said that he thought I had good communication skills, good listening skills, an outgoing personality and with my background as an Religious Education teacher he felt I would be ideal. After a chat with one of the Readers there I made my application to the Bishop. After a selection process I was accepted on the three year course. The course consisted of lectures with monthly tutorials and weekends away. I was licensed in Southwark Cathedral in October 1999. 

As a Reader at All Saints I assist the vicar at the Sunday Eucharist. I preach about once a month and administer the chalice at Holy Communion. I visit the sick and housebound and take them Holy Communion if required. I have taken non-Eucharistic services as well as family services. I also take funerals, as I have a licence. In general, I support Annette and the activities of the church in any way I can, which has included sponsored Old Testament and New Testament reads in which many members of the Parish participated and helped to raise vital funds for the church.

Churchwarden: Neal Long

When I first walked into All Saints Church, one Sunday morning in August 2013, I was immediately struck by the warm, friendly way that I was welcomed. In the Church Hall for refreshments afterwards, one of the choir, Brian, came up to me and smilingly asked “Are you that tenor who was singing very loudly in the congregation?” In true British fashion, I immediately started to apologise but Brian would have none of it. “No, no, you must join the choir.” So I did! I later became one of the volunteer gardeners and in May 2018 I became Churchwarden.

I have spent the last 23 years working in the voluntary sector, 18 of which I was privileged to be the CEO of Sands (the stillbirth and neonatal death charity). During that time we experienced considerable growth which enabled us to work closely with Government and health professionals to ensure that fewer babies die each day in the UK. The experience of working with different teams of people to make a difference is what inspired me at Sands and what I hope to contribute to All Saints.

Churchwarden: Graham Dix

Having been brought up in and around Eltham and New Eltham, it was only natural that I would be drawn towards All Saints. When one of the members of the local horticultural society, to which I belonged, made an appeal for more people to join the All Saints choir, my name came up partly because I had sung for a few years in my school choir. So I joined the choir as a bass in 2011, which in turn led me to being elected on to the PCC and then together with Neal to become a churchwarden in May 2018.  

I have worked for over forty years in a variety of roles in the financial services sector, mainly in the City of London, with a particular focus on internal audit and compliance and in promoting, managing and delivering training services. The wide range of people that I have worked with in my professional life has meant that I especially enjoy being involved with what is a very friendly and welcoming congregation at All Saints as well as with many aspects of the regular Sunday and special services. 

Treasurer: Paul Lawal

Church Council Vice Chairperson: Peter French

I’ve lived in New Eltham all my life. I joined the congregation of All Saints when I was baptised and I’ve been a member ever since.

I am married and have two “kids” aged 16 and 21. I work full time for a communications company as a product manager. I enjoy cycling and following the fortunes of West ham United (which has as many ups and downs as a hilly cycle ride).

I’ve done various roles at All Saints from being a member of the choir when I was a child to being a Church Warden and helping with the maintenance of the building. I’ve heard various descriptions of All Saints but the ‘Church Family’ seems to fit the bill.

We aim to be welcoming and friendly to all no matter where people are on their personal journey.

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