
The Rt Rev Simon Burton-Jones is the Bishop of Tonbridge. Simon is the seventh Bishop of Tonbridge, having been consecrated at St Paul’s Cathedral exactly twenty-five years to the day since being ordained for the first time. Simon was born and brought up in Fleetwood, Lancashire, studied law at Emmanuel College, Cambridge and worked as a researcher and political campaigner before ordination.
He trained at St John’s College, Nottingham and was ordained as Deacon in the Diocese of Blackburn in 1993, becoming Team Curate at St Peter, Darwen and St Paul, Hoddlesden (1993-96) and has served in the Diocese of Rochester as Curate of St Mark, Biggin Hill (1996-98), Priest in Charge and then Vicar of St Mary, Bromley (1998-2005), Area Dean of Bromley (2001-2006), and Rector of St Nicholas, Chislehurst (2005-2010) before being appointed Archdeacon of Rochester (2010 – 2018).
As Bishop of Tonbridge, he focuses on evangelism and growth, rooted in Called Together, the Diocese of Rochester’s vision. He also has oversight and leadership of the education, youth and children, and community engagement work of churches across the Diocese of Rochester. In relation to education, he chairs the Diocesan Board of Education, supporting the work of the 89 Church of England schools within the Diocese.
His role will be to provide leadership, ideas and insight for the diocese as it pursues the vision embodied in Called Together. Helping people to express their faith openly and kindly, and thinking through what it means to be disciples of Christ in today’s complex and volatile world will be an important component of this role – keeping the Church especially mindful of the challenges of children and young people growing up within it.
Simon is married to Julia and they have two children, Tim and Helena and a daughter in law, Aislinn. He is a lover of contemporary literature, indie cinema, theatre, rock music – notably U2 – and lots of sports, greedily supporting three football teams in Fleetwood, Blackpool and Liverpool. He was an early adopter of TV’s The West Wing and wishes he could have worked in the Bartlet administration – or at least have every conversation of his scripted by Aaron Sorkin.
He has spent far too much of his life watching The Simpsons and his only real achievement has been to get a quote in an all-time book of cricket quotations. However, he piggybacks on the recent revelation that one of his ancestors baptised William Shakespeare. Some people say he has a lovely voice, which is a polite way of saying he has a face for the radio.