Christ Church Central Leeds is a new church meeting in the centre of Leeds. Our congregation is made up of people from across the city, of different ages and backgrounds – families, students, singles, couples and retired. We hope you'll find a warm welcome at our Sunday morning service whether you're a church regular or have never been to church in your life!
Christ Church Central Leeds is a Presbyterian church. Presbyterian is just an English word derived from the New Testament’s (Greek) word for elder.
Christ Church is therefore led by a team of elders who together have responsibility for shepherding the flock. All elders are accountable to the presbytery: the group of other elders in the denomination.
Leadership
Jonty Rhodes
Minister
Jonty is married to Georgina, and they have four girls and a boy. He trained for ministry at Oak Hill Theological College in London, and has served as Assistant Minister at St. Alkmund’s Church in Duffield, and Minister at Christ Church Derby.
Peter Wood
Elder
Peter is married to Juliette. They have three grown-up children and seven grandchildren. Before his retirement and move back to Yorkshire, Peter worked in corporate communications for British Gas and subsequently as a member of the senior management team at Oak Hill Theological College.
Matt Shortman
Elder
Matt is one of the elders at Christ Church Central. Married to Jen, they have three boys and a girl, and live on the east side of Leeds. Matt originally worked for a bank, then spent five years in ministry working for the Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship and Christ Church Derby. He is now a civil servant, working on government policy.
Staff
Nick Algeo
Assistant Minister
Nick is married to Harriet and they have three children. The Algeos moved to Leeds in the summer of 2022; before that they were living in The Gambia (West Africa), where Nick taught in a Bible school.
Lizzie Wilson
Ministry Trainee
Originally from Southend-on-Sea in Essex, Lizzie moved to Leeds three years ago to study Philosophy at the University of Leeds. Having just graduated in June, Lizzie is one of our ministry trainees.
Rory Hart
Ministry Trainee
Rory grew up in Essex, but moved to Leeds to complete his undergraduate degree in Economics and Geography, graduating in the summer of 2022. He loves to play and watch football (particularly his beloved Tottenham Hotspur), as well as spending time with friends playing board games or enjoying a cold pint somewhere.
Brett McAlpin
Church Worker
Brett and his wife, Valerie, have two girls and two boys. Before being called to ministry Brett worked for a multinational corporation in America. He attended Birmingham Theological Seminary (USA) and served seven years as a missionary in Bulgaria helping to strengthen and plant churches.
Denomination
Christ Church Central Leeds is a congregation of the International Presbyterian Church, which was founded in 1954 through the ministry of Francis Schaeffer, and now has congregations across the UK, Europe and South Korea.
