The Ven Jonathan Gough is to retire from his role as Archdeacon of Richmond and Craven after five years of ministry in the Diocese of Leeds.
Archdeacon Jonathan will be leaving early in 2025 in a move aligned with his wife Revd Canon Dr Flora Winfield’s recent appointment as the next Suffragan Bishop of Selby in the Diocese of York.
Speaking of his decision, Jonathan said: “It has been a huge privilege to serve as Archdeacon of Richmond and Craven since March 2019.
“I have loved visiting parishes around the area, and have been greatly impressed by the devotion and care of the clergy, the resilience and ingenuity of lay officers, and the faithfulness and commitment of congregation members.
“I am immensely grateful for the trust placed in me by Bishop Nick, and for the friendship and encouragement of Bishops Anna and Helen-Ann, of my fellow archdeacons, and of ordained and lay colleagues too many to mention.
“It has been a joy to be able to offer such support as I can to the mission and ministry of the Church in this lovely part of England.
“The archdeaconry of Richmond and Craven is a relatively new post, but its antecedents date back to 1088 and 1836 respectively, and I have been humbled by the goodly inheritance that I have been able to hold for this time.
“But I recognise that for everything there is a season, and I acknowledge that this is the time lay down these duties so that someone else can take them forward in new and creative ways. 
“Flora Winfield, my wife, has been called to become Bishop of Selby and I look forward to moving with her to the Diocese of York. Please keep us in your prayers as we begin the next phase of our ministries," said Jonathan, pictured at his installation at Ripon Cathedral in March 2019.
Wishing Archdeacon Jonathan all the best, the Rt Revd Nick Baines, Bishop of Leeds said: “Archdeacon Jonathan brought a wealth of expertise and organisational skills to the diocese when he joined us from his senior clergy role in the British Army. We are very grateful for his service to the Ripon Episcopal Area and ministry in the diocese as a whole. We wish him and Flora the very best for the future – which promises to be bright and fulfilling.”
Jonathan grew up in rural Devon and trained for ordination at Lampeter and Oxford.
He was a curate in North Devon and in Gloucester, before joining the Royal Army Chaplains Department in 1989.
He served as an Army chaplain in garrisons and training units in the UK and in Germany, and deployed with soldiers on operations in Northern Ireland, Bosnia and Kosovo.
His service included tours of duty as Senior Chaplain to Catterick Garrison, and to the Army Foundation College, Harrogate.
In 2001 he left the Regular Army to become Ecumenical Secretary to the Archbishop of Canterbury at Lambeth Palace, working for both Dr George Carey and Dr Rowan Williams.
At the end of this time he was appointed an Honorary Canon of St Paul’s Cathedral, Nicosia.
In 2005 he returned to regular military service, deploying to Iraq, and later to Afghanistan as the Senior Chaplain to the British Forces. He returned to northern England as the regional senior chaplain for Yorkshire and the North East in 2011-14.