People

SOMA Staff

National Director
Richard came to SOMA UK from parish ministry in London and Wolverhampton. He is married to Nicola and they have three children. He came to faith on a short-term mission trip to Romania in 1995 and has travelled since then in Africa, Asia, Europe for missions and supporting Christian workers.
In the UK he speaks at churches, conferences and retreats around the country. He runs a popular blog: In previous roles he has been a Regional Director for New Wine England and a Fresh Expressions Advisor for Lichfield Diocese.

Operations Officer
Claire Bateman joined SOMA in January 2025 from the public sector. She has a passion for mission combined with operational efficiency and experience.
Claire is married to Tim and they have three young children. She is passionate about seeing lives transformed by Jesus and is part of the team at St Peters Farnborough where her husband is the vicar.

Intercession Coordinator
Jon is the vicar at St. Michael's Church, Norton, Stourbridge, where he’s been for 2 years. He is married to Naomi and has a young toddler named Tobias.
He says ‘I look forward to working with SOMA, particularly in coordinating intercession, and I am excitedly anticipating hearing and sharing the testimonies of what our good God is doing around the world in answer to prayer through the global church.’

Meta Youth Lead
Stu set up META Youth through SOMA UK in 2022 to inspire 16-19s in bible knowledge, discipleship and cross-cultural ministry. In the summer of 2023 he led his first SOMA | Meta Youth mission to Zgharta Lebanon, followed by Rwanda in 2024.
Stu is married to Susie and they have two children. He has been a church planter and parish vicar and now works for GIANT as a senior partner and leadership consultant helping influential leaders at key moments of transition.

Missions Administrator
Tiffany joined SOMA UK in April 2025. In 2014 she returned from serving on the leadership of a Christian NGO in Mbale, Uganda, with particular oversight for organising volunteers and visiting teams. In moving back she married Stephen and became mum to three children. They now live in Canterbury where Stephen is Associate Vicar at St Mary Bredin. She takes joy in combining her experiences of mission abroad with her time rooted in the local church, and longs to see the body of Christ connect around the world through the sending and receiving of teams.

META Youth Leader
Lydia has been helping run META Youth from the outset, supporting the shaping of the programme and working alongside the young people. She is passionate about helping young people develop and grow in their faith.
Lydia is married to Ben and lives in Eastbourne with their two daughters. She is a leadership consultant, helping to unlock the potential of people and loves to bring this knowledge into the world of the youth too.

John is retired now, but was previously an IBM systems consultant and more recently a secondary school maths teacher. He has lived in Chiswick with his wife Jenny, for forty years and was Treasurer at Christchurch W4 there for sometime. He is keen to help support SOMA's radical evangelism in places the gospel might not otherwise reach.

Trustees

Chair of Trustees
Kevin is married to Anne and lives in Shrewsbury, where he was a Vicar and Rural Dean before moving to be Archdeacon of Carlisle and then Director of ReSource, through to his retirement in 2021. Kevin has led SOMA UK teams over many years and is delighted to be chairing the Board of Trustees for a season and to be supporting Richard and his staff.

Mark Ireland has served for 40 years as a priest in the Church of England, retiring as Archdeacon of Blackburn in April 2025. His ministry has included two spells as a vicar and a time as Diocesan Missioner in Lichfield diocese. As an author and speaker, his interests include growing as a disciple of Jesus, prayer and mission action planning. His spiritual journey has been enriched by experience of mission and ministry in different parts of the world. His governance experience includes serving on the General Synod and the Archbishops Council of the Church of England. He is married to Gill and they love walking and cake.

Wayne co-leads B&A Church in Bristol. In addition to serving as a trustee of SOMA, he Is a trustee of the George Muller Charity, and Chaplain to Bristol Rovers FC.

Ken, a Canadian, was a missionary to Sierra Leone before moving to the UK with his family to continue serving leaders in Africa through short-term visits. He has led multiple SOMA missions in East Africa and Sierra Leone, and particularly enjoys taking teams to “the places less visited.”

Rachael is a podcast expert, who Rachel heads up a podcasting and coaching business and advises SOMA on many operational and production matters. Originally from Uganda and now ministering in England, she brings a wealth of experience to the board, and is our interim safeguarding lead.

Claire is a qualified accountant with 25 years’ experience in local authorities, including as a Director for Finance for 6 years.
Claire feels privileged to be able to support SOMA as a trustee and longs to see SOMA's dreams become a reality.

Jules has been Executive Director for UK Churches Administrator Network, New Wine England and Operations Director for St Stephen’s Twickenham. She is now head of People and Operations for the Bible Reading Fellowship. She is married to Paul and has two children.

Following a 20 year career in the Royal Navy and Fleet Air Arm, David subsequently worked in the aerospace and defence industries. He then joined the NHS in 2007, retiring in 2025. He is a Chartered Director and a non executive director of SWFT Clinical Services Ltd, a Trustee of the Meon Valley Food Bank and serves on the PCC of his parish church in Hampshire.

Risa is a META Youth Graduate who loves mission and Jesus and is heading to University to study law. She is also a gifted worship leader who says that the META Youth programme and missions with SOMA has changed her life and accelerated her leadership.

Nev runs his own energy consultancy business and supports SOMA as Honorary Treasurer. He lives in West London, is involved in the local church and community, and is married with two children.

National Leadership Team

SOMA Ireland
Henry has 19 years of ordained parish experience before stepping out in faith to focus on leading SOMA Ireland and operating as Secretary for SOMA International.
We work closely with Henry for coordinating shared missions overseas as well as on projects and programmes in the UK and Ireland.
He is married to Helen and has four grown up boys.

Helen is Vice Principal Academic and Tutor in Practical Theology at Trinity College in Bristol. She has published works on a range of topics, including Charismatic Christianity, theological reflection, theological education, and worship. She joined a SOMA trip to South Sudan in 2025 and is passionate to build links between global mission and theological education. She is married to Simon and is mother to three teenage children.

Sadiya came to Christ from another faith background and has a remarkable story to tell of God’s grace and deliverance. She is training to be a Church of England minister and joined our team after a placement with SOMA in Autumn 2025, where it was clear she shared our heart and calling.

Barney is the vicar of St Mary Bredin, and carries a family name with a significant spiritual heritage. The Lord has stationed him in Canterbury as a watchman, and he has a heart to grow as a spiritual parent to many, impacting the region, the nation and the world.

Patron

Our Patron is Bishop David Williams, the Bishop of Truro. He has long been an enthusiastic part of SOMA, taking part in our vital intercession work and participating in a SOMA mission to DRC. He grew up in Uganda, still has relatives in East Africa, and has a particular commitment to DRC Congo. He has been Bishop of Truro since 2025 and was Bishop of Basingstoke since 2014. He is also the emissary of the Archbishop of Congo.