Director, Catholic Educatio Service
Former barrister Paul Barber was director of education for the Diocese of Westminster before taking over as director of the CES in 2013. A graduate of Jesus College, Cambridge, he has an MA in Canon Law, is a Judge of the Southwark Metropolitan Tribunal and a governor at St Mary’s University, Twickenham. He has used his position of prominence to reject the notion that faith schools segregate populations.
Headmaster, Stonyhurst College
Founded in 1593, Stonyhurst is the oldest continuously active Jesuit school in the world, counting three saints, 12 beati and seven archbishops among its alumni. With over 800 pupils, it continues to thrive under the stewardship of Bristol music graduate John Browne, who was appointed in 2016.
Senior lecturer, St Mary’s University, Twickenham
Dr Stephen Bullivant has been a lecturer in theology in British academia for almost a decade. He serves as director of the Benedict XVI Centre for Religion and Society. His research focuses on the study of non-belief and atheism and the enduring relevance of Paul VI’s Humanae Vitae; he is the author of Mass Exodus: Catholic Disaffiliation since Vatican II (OUP, 2019).
Professor of the History of Christianity, University of Cambridge
Professor of the History of Christianity at the University of Cambridge, Prof Duffy specialises in the 15th-17th century religious history of Britain and is a former member of the Pontifical Historical Commission. A prolific author and broadcaster, his work, including his famous book The Stripping of the Altars, has done much to overturn the popular image of late-medieval Catholicism as being in terminal decline, and instead presents it as a vibrant cultural force.
Philosopher and author
A Scottish philosopher, commentator and broadcaster, Prof Haldane specialises in 20th-century philosophy and is credited with coining the term “Analytical Thomism”. He is a former consultor to the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Culture and was chairman of the Royal Institute of Philosophy.
Headmaster, Downside School
Andrew Hobbs is a rugby blue who read Classics at Magdalene College, Cambridge; he was educated at Worth School. Appointed as headmaster of Downside in 2018 following a challenging period for the school, he oversaw the last monks of Downside leaving for Buckfast Abbey. His wife Damaris works in the NHS as a physiotherapist and they have four children.
Professor of Literature and Theology, University of Cambridge
Appointed CBE in 2014 and the recipient of a MacArthur “Genius” grant, Michael Hurley is Professor of Literature and Theology at the University of Cambridge, and a fellow and director of studies in English at Trinity College. He was educated at Stonyhurst, Cambridge and St Andrews. He is a trustee of the Christian Heritage Centre at Stonyhurst, which “exists to offer a deeper spiritual and intellectual engagement with the Christian faith”. He frequently gives talks and public lectures on the philosophical and theological questions posed by art and literature.
Director, Anscombe Bioethics Centre
Prof Jones is a director at the Anscombe Bioethics Centre, Oxford, which is the national research centre in bioethics for the Catholic Church. Also a research fellow at Blackfriars, Oxford and at St Mary’s, Twickenham, he is regularly called on to give evidence at parliamentary committees and other regulatory bodies.
Director, Anscombe Bioethics Centre
Former cabinet minister and Labour MP Ruth Kelly has been a defender of Catholic positions on issues such as abortion in public affairs throughout her career. Despite her time at the forefront of New Labour, she is now involved with the centre-right Policy Exchange think tank. A member of Opus Dei, she assists the Vatican council with its finances after an appointment by Pope Francis.
Vice-Chancellor, St Mary’s University, Twickenham
Anthony McClaran has been chief executive of UCAS and of the UK Quality Assurance Association, among other high-level roles. He is the third vice-chancellor of St Mary’s University, having taken up the post in April 2020.
Headmaster, Worth School
Australian Stuart McPherson was a housemaster at Eton College before taking over as head of Worth, one of the most successful Catholic schools in the UK today. His tenure has been judged as a great success so far, especially by Catholic parents who admire his enthusiasm in upholding the school’s Benedictine ethos and monastic traditions. His wife, Johneen McPherson, is headmistress of the Catholic St Catherine’s School, Twickenham.
Chancellor, University of Oxford
Born to an Irish Catholic family in London, Chris Patten was elected as the Conservative MP for Bath in 1979. He served as the last governor of Hong Kong from 1992 to 1997, when the territory was handed to China. In 2003, he was elected Chancellor of the University of Oxford. In 2014, Cardinal Pell asked Patten to coordinate the reform of the Vatican’s media operations. Patten also led the organisation of Benedict XVI’s visit to the United Kingdom in 2010. Recently, he has been firmly critical of the Vatican’s deal with Beijing.
