"Will you be diligent in prayer, in reading Holy Scripture, and in all studies that will deepen your faith and fit you to bear witness to the truth of the Gospel?"

This question is asked of Bishops, Priests and Deacons in the Ordinal and places life-long learning, support and development at the heart of the lives and ministry of all clergy.

In the Diocese of London this individual clergy responsibility is supported by a range of training and development opportunities and resources offered and organised at both diocesan and Area level. These include direct training courses and conferences, indirect training through coaching, work consultancy and study leave, further and higher education and ongoing development through the process of the Ministerial Development Review.

It is also important that clergy should feel affirmed and encouraged in their ministry and there are a range of support processes and resources available to be used at appropriate times.

At Diocesan level Continuing Ministerial Education Development (CMD) or clergy support and development is promoted and coordinated by the Diocesan Director of Ministry, and at Area level by the Director of Training and Development.

Training of the laity is just as important; information for Licenced Lay Ministers and Readers can be found on the Lay Ministers support page. Opportunities for all can be seen on the Events pages or by contacting the Area Director of Development and Training.

Definition and objectives

CMD offers support to clergy at all stages of their ministry and it is important that these are clearly defined so that appropriate training may be undertaken. For example, Post Ordination Training (POT) which covers the first three years after an ordinand is made a Deacon follows a clearly defined and managed programme and is normally separate from CMD. It can be described as CMD 1-3. In other dioceses POT usually lasts four years and is described as CMD 1-4 or Initial Ministerial Education (IME) 4-7.

Requirements

There is a mutual responsibility and expectation for on-going support, training and development between individual members of the clergy and the Diocese of London. This was further formalised in the Terms of Service legislation defined by Common Tenure. 

The Bishops have ensured the provision of processes, financial resources and supporting staff. Each member of the clergy has the responsibility to seek out and use the resources available, both at a local level and more widely. These expectations include the requirement for all Licensed Clergy to undertake an Annual Ministerial Development Review with a trained MDR Consultant of their choice. Additionally, all Licensed Clergy will have a triennial Episcopal Review.

Biennial Study Summit

The first Study Summit was held in September 2012. Entitled 'Being The Church in a World City' it was an opportunity for the 600 clergy attending to reflect on and celebrate together the way the capital had responded to the events of summer 2012. We were delighted to welcome Dr Rowan Williams, then Archbishop of Canterbury as a keynote speaker.

The speakers offered a real depth of knowledge and experience of ministry in world cities, and shared excellent insights, grounded in theology to stimulate and challenge all those present. Talks from the event are available on the study summit website.

The next summit will be on Tuesday 30 September 2014.