Greenwich Peninsula Chaplaincy: Chaplains

Chaplains

Chaplains at work on the Greenwich Peninsula

We have a team of eleven chaplains working on the Greenwich Peninsula: nine in The O2, one on the Laing O'Rourke construction site in the Greenwich Millennium Village, and one in the Syral food refinery on the western side of the Peninsula. In The O2 pairs of chaplains are allocated groups of restaurants, bars, etc., and there is a chaplain present at some point during the day Monday to Thursday and on Thursday evening (visiting Urban Inc, the nightclub).

What we do when we are on site

We are available for conversation and listening. All conversations will necessarily be brief, but we can arrange to meet up later to finish a conversation.

We are there to offer support and to ask how things are going. Often people can bring worries from home to work or the other way round which can affect their home or work life, causing stress and unhappiness.

What we don't do

No Chaplain on their own initiative will attempt to persuade anyone of the virtue or truth of the chaplains own Faith. They might employ the resources of their own Faith to respond to expressed spiritual need, and if asked for reasons for their own beliefs might respond.

Confidentiality

Anything said to a chaplain is assumed to be confidential. It will not be repeated or passed onto anyone else without an express permission to do so.

Sometimes the Site Chaplain attends meetings and will bring up subject areas that have been brought up with themselves or other chaplains working on the site. This is more likely to happen if more than one person has mentioned the same issue of concern. Names are never given to the managers or trades unions' officials, or whoever else might be in a meeting. We always depersonalize an issue so that it cannot be traced back to any individual or group of individuals.

The multi-faith nature of the chaplaincy

If you want to speak to a chaplain from a specific religion and it is not the religion of the chaplain you are talking to, please ask and it can be arranged for you. Offence will not be caused by asking for another chaplain from another Faith.

If you have a problem with a Chaplain

If the management, trade union officers or anyone else have concerns about the behaviour of a chaplain it should be raised with the Site Chaplain in the first instance. The details of the site Chaplain can be found on the notice boards. Comments can also be made to the Chair of the Greenwich Peninsula Chaplaincy Steering Group — who can be contacted through this website.

From 2005 to 2007 on the O2 construction site

From 2005 to 2007 a team of eight chaplains operated on the O2 construction site. A survey was conducted near to the end of that period. To see the results, click here.

The Chaplaincy Team

Nigel Anderson: Christian - Church of England

Nigel is a Christian and worships locally at St. Alfege’s where he helps keep the Church open for visitors and tourists at weekends. He is a trained “listener” and works as a humanities and special needs teacher in a Greenwich secondary school. In his spare time Nigel enjoys singing and hill walking,

Davinder Kaur Babraa: Sikh

Davinder practices her faith of Sikhism at the Ramgarhia Temple in Woolwich. She is a retired teacher and now spends most of her time with the British Thyroid Foundation running a help line, organizing meetings and supporting families. Davinder is also asked to speak about her faith to a wide range of people and organisations, including teachers, local authorities and the World Council of Churches. Davinder is a keen walker in her spare time.

Sheikh Ali Hassan Barakat: Muslim: Ali is an Imam and Chaplain for the Oxleas NHS Trust. With a wealth of experience gained from nine years as both an Imam and as a hospital chaplain Ali has chosen to bring these skills to the workers on the Peninsula.

The Reverend Derek Clacey: Christian — Church of England

Derek is Team Vicar in the Church of England Team Ministry of East Greenwich, and was app ointed in 2004. Born in Dartford, he trained as a quantity surveyor and spent 11 years in the building indust ry before training for ministry. The last 30 years have taken him away from this area to serve in No ttingham, Harlow, Aylesbury and the New Forest before returning to the area. Having returned to his roots, he finds it an exciting place to live, enjoys the buzz of urban life, and is fascinated by the closeness of th e take-aways, railway station, buses, Charlton Athletic, and The O₂ Building.


The Reverend Martyn Coe : Christian — United Reformed Church: Martyn Coe is a Christian Minister working in Greenwich within the United Reformed and Met h odist Churches. Initially a trustee of the chaplaincy, in 2005 Martyn was appointed by his regional church to work in East Greenwich and the Peninsula until 2010. Martyn has since become one of the Chaplains and has stood down as a trustee.

The Reverend Michael Dent: Christian — Church of England: Michael is an experienced Industrial Chaplain with a range of skills gained from work places as diverse T he Globe Theatre, Excel Distribution and the Ministry of Defence. Michael started his career, nearly forty years ago, as Curate in the Isle of Wight and took early retirement from H.M. Customs and Excise as a Senior Personnel Officer to do more vocational work. Michael also spent eight years acting as an advisor to the Diocese of Rochester specifically in the area of Industrial Mission for South West Kent. Michael currently is working part time for Mission in London's Economy as an advisor.

The Reverend Cynthia Finnerty: Christian — Church of England: Cynthia is an Honoary Curate in the Parish of East Greenwich at St. George's Church. She has spent most of her life in this area and she is keen to see the new community develop harmoniously on the Peninsula. Cynthia is also a part time music teacher; she enjoys developing local drama projects and keeping up to date with new scinetific developments.

The Reverend Arthur Obiora: Christian— Church of England: Arthur has served the Church of England Parish of St. Catherines, Hatcham. In his other working life he has been a Civil Servant, Magistrate and Industrial Engineer and was a Clerk to the Medical Tribunal. Aurthur belives wholeheartedly in the multi-faith ethos.

The Reverend Nancy Odunewu : Christian: Nancy is a member of the Joint Council for Anglo — Caribbean Churches.; Nancy is flexible in her worship, which she feels enhances her career as a consultant, as well as aspiring to work at an Inter-faith level.; Her work in the Church has been amongst young people, as well as adults, creating projects which reflect the needs within the Community and Churches.

Harbhajan Singh : Sikh: Harbhajan co-founded the Anglo-Asian-African-Caribbean Friendship and Cultural Association in May 1977. This was set up t o bring mutual understanding and exchange of culture between diverse communities. Three years ago he co-founded the Bexley Multi-Faith Forum and is Vice Chair.; Harbhajan is an experienced prison Chaplain. Harbhajan is a retired teacher, he is a currently a school governor and Chair of the Greenwich Asian Parents Forum. He also acts as the Public Relations Officer for the Council of Gurdwaras, South East and is planning a large celebration of the contributions made by Sikhs to history and heritage.

The Reverend Malcolm Torry : Christian — Church of England: Malcolm Torry has served the Church of England parish of East Greenwich, and particularly the congregation of St. George's Westcombe Park, for over ten years. He has been a parish priest and industrial chaplain for more than twenty-five years. As well as being Site Chaplain on the peninsula, he is chaplain to the Tate and Lyle refinery. He regularly attends meetings of the Greenwich Multi-Faith Forum and of the Greenwich, Bexley and Lewisham Chamber of Commerce. He has been Site Chaplain since 2003, and is responsible to the Greenwich Peninsula Chaplaincy Steering Group for the work of the chaplains.

Greenwich Peninsula Chaplaincy