Leadership
These are the hearts that steward the CU in fulfilling its vision.
“Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety“ – Proverbs 11:14
The CU is a large collective of students working to give as many students in Durham as possible the opportunity to receive the gospel.
With such a bold vision, a strong group of leaders are needed to ensure this mission is accomplished effectively in Christ. Below lists the various leaders alongside their responsibilites.
The Exec
The Executive Committee are responsible for managing the CU as a whole and ensuring that it’s fulfilling the vision as effectively as possible. Although each member has their key focus area, the Exec work as a team to support every part of the CU. The Exec are led by the Co-Presidents.
Co-President
Benjamin Bloch
I co-lead the Christian Union by making sure that everything we do is in line with the overall vision of the CU (to give every student in Durham the opportunity to hear and respond to the Gospel of Jesus Christ). This looks like overseeing the day-to-day running of the CU and praying for the lost souls in Durham and the Christians as they seek to witness to them.
Co-President
Sadie Keaveny
Sadie co-leads the CU, ensuring that the vision is carried forward and that all parts of the CU are well supported. It’s her passion to see the CU not just as a place of fellowship, but as a movement that faithfully points students to Jesus and His transforming love.
Secretary
Ruth Shiels
My job mostly involves making sure events can go ahead in a way that is safe, allowing people to hear the gospel without distractions! I communicate with other groups to book rooms and generally coordinate the administrative tasks of the CU.
Treasurer
Andrew Pickett
The Treasurer is responsible for making sure the finances of the CU are provisioned well and are helping to further the reach of the Gospel in Durham.
Outreach Coordinator
Eleanor Meese
I have the privilege of serving the Christian Union as Outreach Coordinator this year. This involves attending and organising the different outreach events, and supporting the outreach committee as we seek to fulfil the vision of Durham CU. We have an incredible opportunity to proclaim the gospel at university through our outreach events and I am excited to see how God will move in our city this year.
International Coordinator
Joshua Wong
The International Secretary is responsible for looking after the outreach of the Gospel to International Students in Durham. This involves overseeing International-focussed events in the CU such as Globe Café, Language Conversation Partners (LCP), and Japanese Conversation Partners (JCP)
College Coordinator
Esther Moss
My job is to oversee and support our many College CUs. This involves meeting regularly with the College Reps (i.e. College CU Leaders) for training and encouragement, and also involves working with the Co-Presidents to decide what the colleges will be looking at in their weekly Bible Studies.
Prayer Secretary
Olivia Chatterley
My role is to lead our weekly Prayer Meetings, providing a space for all members of the CU to come together in faith. I am dedicated to encouraging and fostering a consistent prayer culture within our community. By overseeing and promoting prayer for all CU initiatives, I ensure that our actions and decisions are grounded in prayer, seeking guidance and wisdom for everything we undertake. Join me in lifting up every aspect of our CU’s life in prayer!
Events Committee Chair
Will Buchanan
I get the privilege of working alongside the FABULOUS Events Committee in organising the Christmas Carol Service in the Cathedral and the Events Week in February. These are two amazing events and it’s incredible to have the opportunity for the good news of the Gospel to be shared to so many people through them.
Digital Outreach Coordinator
Megan Rogers
As the Digital Outreach Coordinator, I am dedicated to maintaining all the CU’s social media platforms, ensuring we stay connected and relevant in the digital space. My role involves a vibrant mix of content creation, and community engagement, extending our reach far and wide. I’m also at the helm of designing creative leaflets that visually communicate our mission and upcoming events, aiming to both inform and inspire our community!
UCCF Staff Workers
Durham Christian Union, along with CUs in almost every University in the country, is supported by the Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship (UCCF). They provide the CU with guidance and support – mainly through staff workers whose job it is to provide wisdom, practical assistance, and support to the CU mission as best as they can!
Tom Widdowson
Staff Worker
Hi, my name is Tom and I’m one of the UCCF Staff Workers supporting Durham CU. I’m originally from Yorkshire but moved to Durham for uni back in 2014 and I’ve been in and around Durham ever since. I met my wife at Durham and our daughter was born here too, so it’s got a special place in my heart. I’ve got an amazing job – I get to encourage and equip Durham CU in their mission to share Jesus with other students. Day-to-day, that looks like mentoring CU leaders, speaking at CU events, helping the CU relate well to local churches and connecting the CU with other CUs around the UK. I do this job because I believe that uni provides a unique opportunity to show people who Jesus is. People from all over the world come to Durham with little or no knowledge of who Jesus is or what He’s done. It’s a privilege to support Durham CU as they display and declare God’s love for a lost world and see lives turned around in Jesus’ name. I can’t wait to get to glory and meet people who came to Christ in some way because of the CU and local churches’ witness in Durham.
Naomi Brehms
Staff Worker
Hello! I’m Naomi (AKA Nomes for short), one of the UCCF Staff Workers supporting Durham CU. Grew up in Hertfordshire, dipped into London and Oxford for a bit, and returned in 2021 to the city I studied in from 2015-2019. Students are the best at reaching students – they lead the mission and Tom and I invest in them as they do so. It’s a privilege to encourage and equip Durham CU to be as effective as possible in reaching every student with the good news of Christ through mentoring, training, seminars, talks and conferences. I love getting to see nervous freshers become fiery finalists, to encourage and cheer on new creative ideas, and to hear first-hand the stories of amazing late-night chats, friends trying out church, international students getting baptised, you name it.
Committees
The CU also have teams outside of the Exec to focus on a key areas. These are headed up by a member of the Exec.
Outreach Committee
We have weekly meetings to plan the different outreach events that we run as a Christian Union. The gospel is pertinent and alive in Durham, and these outreach events provide an abundance of opportunities to witness and tell other students about the good news of Jesus Christ. Outreach in Durham includes our regular events such as Text-a-Toastie, Big Question Lunch Bar and Street Outreach, and our one-off events like our annual Big Question Ceilidh and Creative Arts evening.
Events Committee
We exist to allow every student to hear and respond to the GOOD NEWS of Jesus Christ through the Christmas Carol Service in the Cathedral and Events Week in February. These are two of the biggest events in the Durham calendar as over 1500 people get to attend the Carol Service in the Cathedral and hear about Jesus. Events Week is when we put a marquee in a field opposite the Billy B and have lunchtime, international and evening talks for a week. In past years, over 4000 people have attended this week and had the opportunity to hear and respond to who Jesus is. Our role includes a lot of prayerful planning and we look forward to seeing what God does through these events!
International Outreach Committee
This a team is comprised of leaders from our various international outreach programmes such as Language Conversation Partners (LCP) and Globe Café. They work together to ensure the thousands of international students in Durham, some of whom may not have free access to the Bible in their home nation, are given the opportunity to hear the Truth of the Gospel. With a team, larger events such as the Big Christmas Dinner are able to planned and bought to fruition!
Digital Outreach Team
This is a group of students passionate about using media, art, creativity, and technology to spread the Gospel. They work to leverage the power of the internet to ensure that more people than ever are exposed to the CU and get a taste of the Good News we preach.
College Reps
We are fortunate to have smaller, more intimate, groups within our own colleges to encourage one another through scripture and friendship, and to be powerful force beaconing the light of Christ to our peers.
Below are the leaders of each College CU, they are typically mixed gender and from different churches…
Castle CU
Jake Bell
Hild Bede CU
Eleanor Cole
Millie Vaughan
St John's CU
Erin Cairnduff
Jonny Chapman
St Mary's CU
Jamie Price
Lydia Campbell
Cuth's, Chad's & Hatfield CU
Ed Bowley
Nathan Webster
Zina Moss
Aidan's Mildert CU
Isabel Barratt
Tim Harris
Charlie Brindley
Stephenson Butler CU
Caitlin Vernon
Caleb Hughes
Annie Reeve
South John Snow CU
Annabelle Ita
Lowri Wislocka
Trevs CU
Seb Branfield
Tati Tresidder
Collingwood CU
Thomas Grove
Jacob Watkins
Grey CU
Ollie Espinosa
Joseph Leggatt
Other Leaders
Separate from the people listed above, we have other people looking after essential parts of the CU
Tech Director
I’m responsible for overseeing all things tech wise for CU! This means co-ordinating the tech rota and set-up for weekly central meetings, weekend aways, and our other events so that people are able to hear and see the gospel presented clearly. A big part of my role is also training CU members in how it all works so that people can get involved and serve in this way!
Weekend Away Team
The Weekend Away Team is responsible for organising our annual CU Weekend Away that takes place in Michaelmas Term. Every year we all head out of Durham to spend time together, make new friends, dig deeper into the Bible and encounter God as a community. It’s a privilege to organise an event that brings together lots of people from the CU in a new setting so we can grow in faith and have fun altogether!
Worship Coordinator
My job is to facilitate the encouragement and equipping of CU members through live worship music! Practically, this looks like organising a band at Central meetings each week and guiding the themes of the songs we sing to praise God, declare the gospel and fill us with a heart for those who don’t yet know the Lord.
