The Anglican Churches of the Sid Valley are delighted to announce that the next Rector of Sidmouth will be the Reverend Canon Dr Philip Bourne.

He will be instituted by the Bishop of Crediton on the evening of Monday, March 24, 2014, writes Brian Golding.

Dr Bourne follows a long line of Christian spiritual leaders in Sidmouth, dating back to 1175, when the town fitted between the church and the sea, and a deed was executed confirming a lease of land to Gulielmas the vicar.

Many in the town will remember the last rector, The Revderend Prebendary David James, and his wife Ruth, with great affection.

Philip was born in West London and grew up in Gloucestershire.

After undergraduate training as a secondary school music and religious studies teacher in Brighton, he worked part-time as a music teacher in a Quaker School in West Yorkshire while studying for a research degree.

From there he moved to Durham, where he trained to be a priest, before taking up a post as curate in the Wakefield Diocese, south of Leeds.

This was followed by four years on the chaplaincy team at Exeter University, then 13 years in The Netherlands serving as priest to a large expatriate community. Since January 2007, Philip has served the Diocese of Chichester as Director of Ordinands, overseeing the process for selecting and training new priests.

Philip enjoys walking, going to the cinema, playing the piano and organ, and socialising with friends. He has been previously married and has three sons in their twenties. Philip describes himself as a hard worker who is happy to be tempted away from his duties for a chat over coffee or a meal.

He says he looks forward very much to moving to Sidmouth and sharing in the life of the churches and wider communities served by the Sid Valley Mission Community.