Staff Team

Celebrating Darren and Lois as They Begin a New Chapter

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Today I want to share an important update about Darren and Lois Forsdyke. (For those who don’t know, Darren has been our Director of Operations at Welcome Church since January 2018.)

After much prayer and seeking God over a number of months, they’ve sensed that He’s leading them into a new season, and that means Darren will be leaving his employment at Welcome Church later this month as they look to relocate. Here’s the story:

Seeking God

As a church we started 2026 with 21 days of prayer and, during that time, Darren and Lois committed themselves to seeking God. 

Much to their surprise, during that period God spoke to them in a couple of ways that directed them to start considering that their time at Woking was coming to an end and that He was opening a path for them to move to Havant, in Hampshire, to support what is a fairly new, small site of Grace Church, and is also close to their two daughters and sons-in-law, and to their three grandchildren – and I know that Darren and Lois are hugely passionate about the family.

They wanted to approach this carefully and to hear from God clearly, so over the next few months Darren and Lois visited the Havant Church on a Sunday morning, and even spoke with the leaders there and with me personally. Everything looked like this was God calling them to make this move, but we expected it would probably be in a couple of years’ time.

Recently, at the end of another week of personal prayer and fasting, God spoke to them again very clearly asking them to go now – trusting in His protection and guidance – and not to wait until they’d put all the pieces of the puzzle in place. As a church we’ve therefore agreed to release Darren from his employment with us at the end of August and to send them well as they seek to fulfil God’s call on their lives. 

Darren and Lois now busy making plans to sell their house and move, and to look for new employment and everything else that’s needed for this kind of step; as well as working with the Operations Team here to facilitate a smooth handover.

Leaving a huge gap

I’m personally very grateful to Darren and Lois, as I’m sure we all are, for all they’ve done since moving here in 2018. I’ve actually worked with Darren for 21 years now: first when we were planting Grace Church in Chichester, and then again when he and Lois moved to Woking – at my invitation – to help with all that needed doing here. I know they’re both going to leave a huge gap, and for me it feels a bit like I’m losing a limb.

The truth is, Darren has worked relentlessly and faithfully behind the scenes to manage all we do as a church: meetings, buildings, finances, events, and lots more. The fact that we’re meeting here in this chapel and have the Community Hub open next door owes a huge amount to Darren who played a key role in both projects.

Lois has also been very involved in our pastoral care system, and in supporting single mums, and has supported countless women 1-2-1 during difficult times. Together they introduced and ran our Freedom in Christ course each year, something that’s always been a great passion of theirs. Through this and the 1-2-1 support they’ve given people, they’ve helped hundreds of people understand their identity in Christ and what it means to be a child of God.

We will miss Darren and Lois and I am sure you will all join me in wishing them the very best as they follow God into His next step for them.

They’ll still be with us on some Sundays as they seek to relocate, so there will be lots of opportunities for you to talk to them and show them your love and appreciation before they actually leave us.

Moving Forward

While we’ll miss Darren and Lois greatly, we genuinely believe that following God’s leading is always the right thing to do, and we’re delighted to send them with our love, our blessing and our prayers.

While this change naturally leaves a gap in our Operations Team, we’re confident that God knows exactly what our next season looks like. There may be one or two bumps along the way as responsibilities are handed over, so thank you in advance for your patience and grace if something takes a little longer than usual.

We’re already prayerfully considering what the future shape of our Operations Team should look like, and we’ll keep you updated as those plans develop.

Above all, I’d love us as a church family to pray for Darren and Lois over the coming weeks as they prepare for a significant move and an exciting new chapter. Please do take every opportunity to encourage them and thank them for all they’ve invested into Welcome Church over the past 8 and a half years.

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Introducing… Stephen and Emma Dawson

/ Steve Petch / 2 Comments

A while ago we began the search for a new ‘Pastoral Care Lead’ for Welcome Church, and I’m delighted to announce that we’ve filled the position… and then some!

We had a lot of interest, but in the end one person stood out from the others: Stephen Dawson.

Stephen has spent the last 17 years on staff at Emmanuel Church Brighton, who are part of our wider Newfrontiers family of churches. In his time at Emmanuel Church he’s led youth and kids work, planted and led different sites (they are a multi-site church), and has been part of their church eldership team. He also led the whole church for a season during a leadership transition.

Stephen is passionate about pastoral care, building authentic community, and equipping people to grow in their faith and calling. Until recently, he was part of the Newday Festival team, leading the 12-14’s age group for several years. Apparently he’s also a fan of motorcycles, honest conversation, and a good plate of chicken wings.

Emma is also going to be a huge blessing to our church – she has so many gifts of her own to contribute and I know we’ll be delighted to have her here. Among other things, Emma loves creating a home where people feel truly welcome and supported. She’s supported many mums through early parenting, and has been running groups, writing, and blogging at One Pink Toothbrush. She also helps run a family landscaping business, and is known for her colourful shoes, bold earrings, and generous heart.

Stephen and Emma have both lived in Brighton for 25 years. They got married 22 years ago and have six children: one got married last year, another is getting married soon, and a third is about to embark on a year elsewhere, so only three of the six children will be coming with them to Woking initially.

Stephen and Emma are a genuinely lovely couple, and I know they’ll bring us a lot of warmth and faith. They carry a deep love for people and have chosen to live missionally, in a council estate community in Brighton, impacting many lives there and elsewhere. They’re now very excited to be part of what God is doing here at Welcome Church as we move into the future.

What’s next?

Stephen and Emma, plus three kids, will be joining us for the Welcome Church Big Weekend Away at the end of August (do book in if you haven’t already). Stephen’s also going to be preaching for us on Sunday 27th July as part of our Romans series – don’t miss it!

Stephen will join our staff team from the start of September. He comes with a lot of skill and experience suited to a large, growing church, and his role here will be a lot more than just pastoral care. He’ll be leading the Pastoral Care Team, but he’ll also be picking up Life Groups, mid-week church life, and almost certainly the oversight of Welcome Kids and Welcome Youth at the right moment too – and maybe a whole lot more. We’ve decided on the job title of ‘Associate Pastor’ – for now – we may change that at some point down the line.

In the meantime they have a house for sale in Brighton and are looking to buy one here in Woking. Please pray this all moves forward quickly, and also that the relocation goes smoothly, and they find all the school places they need for September. And please pray for the whole family at this time of huge change and transition for them all.

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Welcome Church Staff Team Updates

/ Steve Petch / 1 Comment

Happy New Year!

I know it’s a bit late to say it, but this is my first Welcome Church blog post of 2025! Thanks for reading this far 🙂

We had a great Christmas and New Year season at Welcome Church. I talked about our Carol Services in a previous post, and this year we also introduced a Watchnight Celebration as a brand new event on New Year’s Eve. It was a lot of fun, and I’m looking forward to next year already. Put it in your diary now!

New Year’s Eve at Welcome Church

Staff Team Updates

We have some important changes happening within our church staff team this year.

As the church grows, so do the demands on our team, and we’ve certainly felt the strain of being understaffed in 2024. If you haven’t worked for a church I know it’s hard to imagine what people do all day, but believe me: we are incredibly busy.

For clarity, Welcome Church has more than doubled in size since I arrived 7 years ago, but the employed team is smaller now than it was back then. Everyone is running flat out, and we’ve only survived thanks to some very kind and committed office volunteers who we appreciate so much.

I’d like to share four updates:

First: Jonathan and Sabrina – Leadership Trainees

Jonathan and Sabrina’s time with us will come to an end in June this year, giving us roughly five more months to enjoy and appreciate their contribution. They’re currently praying about their next steps, which are complicated by some VISA challenges. Let’s support them in prayer as they seek God’s will for the future.

Second: Dean – Pastoral Care

Dean, one of our elders, has been working full-time on staff for more than 10 years now. Starting from January 20th, he’ll reduce his hours to three days a week, returning to his passion for architecture on the other two days. In time, he may step out of his staff role entirely. This creates a gap in pastoral care that we’ll need to address.

These first two changes further stretch an already understaffed team. Recruitment will be essential this year, and details on that will follow at the right time. Watch this space 😮

Third: Organisational Leadership

To help the church thrive into the future, we need to strengthen our organisational leadership, which is all about how we steward and align all of our resources to fulfil our vision effectively. This will require some big-picture thinking and also some adjustments to some of our policies, procedures, and ways of working.

To address this, after discussions with the Eldership Team and Trustees, I’ve invited Robin W to step into a new role on an interim basis. Starting immediately, Robin will work two days a week over the next year, focusing on reshaping our organisational leadership. His work will also help us define the future shape of the staff team and help to refine how we operate as a growing church. Part of Robin’s success will be that he replaces himself at the right time and steps back out of the role.

This is an unexpected but exciting step for Robin, and he feels God has been leading him to this role for a while now. I’m eager to make the most of this opportunity to prepare us for the future. It also means he’s stepping back from being a Trustee for the next season. In a business this role might get called Chief Administrative Office, but as a church we’re giving it the title ‘Executive Pastor’ – which leads into the fourth update…

Fourth: Christopher Hawes – New Job Title

Christopher has held the title Executive Pastor for a couple of years, although his role was very different from the one Robin will be taking on and we used the title in a completely different way. To better reflect his actual responsibilities, Christopher’s new job title will now be Teaching Pastor. While his job role remains unchanged, we feel this title better captures his primary focus, and he’s fully supportive of the change.

More changes to come

These are the first four changes for 2025, and several more will follow as we seek to grow and strengthen the staff team. Let’s all show our love and support to each of these individuals as they step into what God has both for them and for our church in this new season.

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Introducing Our Newest Staff Team Member: Mark Caldeira

/ Steve Petch / 2 Comments

As a church we’ve grown a lot in recent months, so our staff team also needs to grow for us to continue to meet the demands of all that needs to be done. One area where we’ve been particularly stretched is our Operations Team, and I’m delighted to announce that we’ve invited Mark Caldeira to join our team full time, as an Operations Manager, from March 6th. Mark won’t be replacing any of our current operations staff; he is needed in addition to them.

Mark is married to Alverna and they have a daughter called Skye who will be 3 years old next month. They are joining us from Mumbai, India where they’ve been part of Living Hope Church, a Commission church led by Vinu Paul. This connection is how I first came to know Mark several years ago and also how I learnt of his move to the UK.

Alverna works for JP Morgan, a financial services company, and last month she was relocated from Mumbai to their offices in Canary Wharf, London – this is the reason behind the family’s relocation to the UK, and why Mark has become available to us.

Mark has vast amount of relevant experience that he will bring to Welcome Church. He started his career working as an Audio Engineer for a recording studio in Mumbai, before moving into church work as Media Director for Living Hope Church and as Vinu Paul’s PA. After this he became the Operations Manager for Living Hope Church and then more recently stepped up to became the Operations Coordinator for the whole of Commission India, which has well over 200 churches across the network.

Mark will bring us expertise in administrative logistics, event and conference management, facilities management, finance & budgeting and IT, and also has experience in improving operational productivity and processes. His skills also include audio, video, media, lighting and sound recording, which I’m sure we’ll put to good use.

Let’s be on the front foot to welcome Mark, Alverna and Skye as they move into Woking over the next few weeks and become part of the Welcome Church family.

Looking to the future we will also need to grow our pastoral staff, especially in the area of co-ordinating our Life Groups and expanding our preaching team. Do be praying as we seek God’s guidance for the way forward in this area of our church life too.