Meet the team

Ministry Area Leader — The Reverend Canon Zoë King TSSF

I was born in Oxford in 1972 and shortly afterwards my father joined the Army Catering Corps so I spent my childhood moving around from Aldershot in Hampshire, Catterick in North Yorkshire, Cyprus and 2 postings in West Germany as it was.  During my sixth form the Berlin Wall came down and to be in Germany at that time was quite special.  My father retired from the Army and we returned to Caerphilly.

Prior to Ministry I was a primary school teacher but whilst training for that had a variety of holiday jobs from working on the pork pie line and packing Cornish pasties in Peter’s Pies and as maybe a foretaste of what was to come working in the majestic holiday home on Barry Island in the Ice Cream Parlour.

I trained at St Michael’s College in Llandaff for ministry — I joked at the time it was the only way I could get out of being Church Sub-Warden. I was ordained to the Diaconate in 2006 and then ordained Priest in 2007 — I had a happy curacy in Neath and then moved for my first incumbency all of 0.9 miles to next door Briton Ferry in 2010.  Then due to the majority of clergy leaving the deanery I ended up as Area Dean in 2012 finding out on my 40th — I’ll be honest it didn’t feel the best present! In 2014 I was also professed as a Tertiary in the Third Order of Saint Francis.

I then moved to Tongwynlais in 2015 to be their priest and also the Initial Ministerial Education officer which was working alongside the curates of the diocese aiding in their training.

Now I’m here and it’s glorious. I’ve been very blessed in all the places I’ve had the privilege to minister — I’m a strong believer in the phrase ‘failure is an option’ because simply it means you’ve tried and not just sat back and more often than not our successes far outweigh our failures.

Zoë has direct responsibility for All Saints’ Church and leads the team as Ministry Area Leader. She was made a Canon of the Greater Chapter of Llandaff Cathedral on 28 November 2022.

Vicar — Father Dan Barnes-Davies SCP

I was born in Essex and more recently a Londoner; I served as Curate of Romford, East London before coming to Barry. The other half (guess which!) of my family has good Welsh heritage. As a priest, I call myself a progressive catholic. Though I’m generally quite a relaxed and fun person, I am very serious about our shared faith and about our church being a community of full and genuine welcome for all God’s children. One of my favourite parts of my ministry as curate was rebuilding the chaplaincy to our church secondary school.

I gladly call myself a geek and I am a proud neurodiverse person (I have ADHD and dyspraxia), so I am very positive about all the different gifts that different people can bring to our shared task, to love and serve God and Barry together. I am a keen swimmer, and you might see me out and about on my trusty tricycle… if I can manage the hills. I am also strange in drinking neither tea nor coffee; I am content with a glass of water.

I married Elizabeth in 2020, so Barry is our first proper home together, and we’re looking forward to settling here for this phase of our lives, and getting to know this wonderful town and her People. I have been a trustee of Inclusive Church since 2013 and Chair of the board since May 2022; I was admitted a member of the Society of Catholic Priests in January 2022. Miriam was born in 2022 and I took Shared Parental Leave from May until October 2023, during which time I’m grateful to Robert for covering St Cadoc’s and St Mary’s.

Dan has been Vicar at St Mary’s since May 2021 and Vicar at Merthyr Dyfan since November 2023; he was previously also Vicar at St Cadoc’s from May 2021 until November 2023.

Vicar — Father Robert Parrish

I was born in Cardiff in 1957, and grew up in Llandaff. I sang in both the Cathedral Parish Choir and the Cathedral Choir. I attended the Howardian High school, Cardiff. In the 1980s I worked for the Central Office of Information in London, and then British Telecom. While in London I met my wife to be, Claudia, and we married in 1984. We have a daughter, Laura, who is married to Tom Bell. They are expecting their first child this September (2020).
In 1989 I began training for the priesthood at St Stephen’s House, Oxford, the same theological college attended by Fr Ben Andrews (our former Team Rector) some years later.
I served my first curacy at St Peter and St Paul, Abington, Northampton and then a second curacy at St Christopher’s, Warden Hill, Cheltenham where the vicar of the neighbouring parish was Adrian Berry, later to be incumbent of All Saints, Barry.
In 1997 I became a priest vicar/ minor canon at Llandaff cathedral, which was a delight given my early association with the cathedral.
In 2002 I was appointed rector of Merthyr Dyfan, and in 2017 a team vicar in the Rectorial Benefice of Barry, when the three Barry parishes merged.

Robert has been Vicar at St Cadoc’s since November 2023; he was previously acting Vicar at both St Mary’s and St Cadoc’s, May until October 2023.

Reader — Peter Atkins

I was born in the Barry Maternity Hospital in 1949 to Fred and Joyce Atkins, a brother to my sister Frances, and was brought up in Cadoxton. I went to Jenner Park Infants and Juniors, and was fortunate enough to pass the dreaded 11plus and started in the new Grammar School on Port Road in September 1960. I joined the school choir and was persuaded by one of the masters to become a chorister at St Paul’s Church; I sang there for about 3 years, until I was admitted to the Orthopaedic Hospital at Rhydlafar, in mid-1964; after a 6 month stay, during which my voice broke, I went home and never returned to the choir.

Sadly, my Dad died when I was in the 6^th Form, and so, after taking A Levels, I turned down the offer to study Geology at Cardiff University, and instead joined the Civil Service. After 6 months working in the local Labour Exchange (now called the Job Centre) in Dock View Road, I transferred to the Welsh Office in Cardiff. I worked in the Health Management Division and in 1972 was posted to the Welsh Office in Whitehall. While in London, I lived in a Scout Leaders’ Hostel in the East End, and helped run Scout Troops in Poplar, Stepney and Hackney; we had an Anglican Chapel in the Hostel and I started taking short “services of the Word”.

In 1976 I returned to the Welsh Office in Cardiff and worked for over 6 years in the Transport and Highways Group. It was when I worked there, that I met Jill, and happily, persuaded her to become my wife in 1979, and we bought a house at the top of Weston Hill.

Our daughter Kate was born in October 1981, and our sons Simon and Tom followed in 1984 and 1991. We now have a grandson, Dylan, and two granddaughters, Daisy and Lily, and a son-in-law Llŷr, and a daughter-in-law Makiko.

Although I had taken short religious services as a Scout Leader, I had not really been in Church since I was 16, but when Kate was born we took the decision to have her baptised, and I went to see Fr Gerald Steele, then Rector of Cadoxton; he emphasised that we would have to make solemn promises to bring Kate to Church regularly, and she was baptised on Easter Day 1982. Jill and I took her to St Mary’s every week, and we both soon became involved. Jill was baptised on Easter Eve 1984 and we were both confirmed the following day. Jill helped in Sunday School and I became a PCC member, then PCC Secretary and subsequently Chair of the Deanery Quota Committee.

By this time, I had transferred to the Welsh Office Industry Dept, and not long after was seconded to the Welsh Development Agency’s International Division, working to try to persuade American companies to set up in Wales. In 1989, one of the firms I had persuaded to set up in Cwmbran, making fire extinguishers, headhunted me to become their UK and European Managing Director.

We had moved from Holton Road to Cwm Talwg and then on to Nant Talwg, and so, following the retirement of Fr Steele, we started attending All Saints in 1992, again becoming very involved — Jill helping as a Sunday School teacher, and in 1997, I was appointed as Rector’s Warden, and a Governor of All Saints School. So I have worshipped in all three of the former Barry parishes!

In early 2000, the owners of the firm I worked for sold all their companies and retired, and I became the National Secretary of a Fire Trade Association, and in late 2000 was appointed as Diocesan Secretary of the Diocese of Llandaff, and I retired in July 2014.

There had been occasions over a period of years, when various people had suggested that I go forward for Ordination; on every occasion, after much thought and prayer, the answer was always NO! Then in 2004 at one of my personnel review meetings, Archbishop Barry suggested that I look at becoming a Licensed Lay Minister (Reader). After much soul searching and many discussions with family and various clergy, I started training at St Michael’s Theological College and Cardiff University in 2006, and was licensed in June 2008 — but to the East Vale Group of 7 Churches, and I served there, taking Morning and Evening Prayer services and preaching on most Sundays. However, I had also helped out by taking Evensong at All Saints after the retirement of Fr John Oeppen, and again when Fr Adrian Berry retired, and eventually I requested a transfer back to All Saints, and was licensed to All Saints’ Parish in 2016. It was like coming home!

In 2019, as required by the rules, I surrendered my license on my 70^th birthday, but was given a “Permission to Officiate” by the Bishop, and so I hope to continue my role of preaching and taking Evensong on a regular basis, once the current Covid situation draws to a close.