Revd Nicholas Holtam appointed Bishop of Salisbury

Revd Nicholas Holtam gave his last service as vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields on 10 July 2011, and was consecrated as Bishop of Salisbury in a ceremony at St Paul's Cathedral on Friday 22 July 2011. 

This is the statement that the churchwardens issued when Nick’s appointment was announced:

Her Majesty the Queen has approved the appointment of the Revd Nicholas Holtam to be The Bishop of Salisbury. The appointment was made on the advice of the Prime Minister, and was announced by Downing Street on 12 April 2011.

We are sure you will join us in congratulating Nick on this very well-deserved honour.

Since Nick joined us in September 1995, St Martin’s has grown under his leadership in all areas: numerically, pastorally, spiritually, architecturally and commercially. His vision, wisdom, skills and commitment have helped make St Martin’s what it is today.

Nick will be ordained and consecrated as bishop by The Archbishop of Canterbury in the summer. His final Sunday at St Martin’s will be 10 July. Plans are underway for these events.

At St Martin’s we are blessed to have a dedicated and hard-working team of clergy, business and office  staff, and lay support. Their workload will inevitably increase during the vacancy and plans are being put in place to make sure that the many aspects of Nick’s role are covered. Details of this will be shared appropriately. As churchwardens we are confident that the team will collectively step in to Nick’s shoes, and we will of course be supporting them throughout.

We do not know at this stage how long the vacancy will last. We have  already been in touch with the Archdeacon of Charing Cross to discuss both the timing and the process.  In due course this will lead us to the appointment of a new vicar, and the beginning of an exciting new phase in the journey of this community.

The Churchwardens of St Martin-in-the-Fields

Read the statement from St Martin-in-the-Fields.

See the Downing Street annoucement.

See the Diocese of Salisbury annoucement.

See the Diocese of London statement.

See a video of Revd Nicholas Holtam in discussion with Bill Bryson at St Martin-in-the-Fields.