After 18-and-a-half years of dedicated service both in Droylsden and Ashton, Reverend Joanne Farnworth is leaving Tameside to take up a role in Shropshire.

Joanne has been a devoted and active figurehead in the local community and for the past 18 months has been Chair of Tameside Independent Advisory Group (IAG), which recently received Greater Manchester Police Chief Constable's Award for its work to guide local policing and community cohesion.

She has also been a Community Champion, working with Tameside Council and other partners to share updates about Covid safety, vaccinations and other key information on local services.

Joanne is moving to Telford to take up the roles of Rector for Central Telford Parish and Associate Archdeacon for Salop supporting churches all over north Shropshire and helping communities who are struggling particularly during these challenging times.

Her husband, Reverend Roger Farnworth - who is a prominent member of the Tameside community - will join her as he is retiring, enabling them to be nearer to their families.

At her last Independent Advisory Group Meeting as chairperson, she said: “I love the area and never imagined that I would be moving. The diversity with being close to the city and the countryside plus the strong community spirit is what originally attracted me to Tameside.”

Joanne added: “I am going to miss the people and the diverse communities of Tameside who are dedicated in their commitment to volunteer to help in as many ways as they can. It has been a privilege to work with people who make a difference to people’s lives, symbolising hope and engagement in all ways.”

Her involvement with the Tameside IAG has resulted in the group, recently gaining recognition from Greater Manchester Police by way of a “Gold Standard” commendation citation for work done within the community.

Councillor Allison Gwynne thanked her for the many years of devoted service to helping to improve the lives of local people in Tameside, her recent roles in the IAG and community champions have been especially valued and impactful and she will be very much missed.

At the end of her last IAG Meeting, Terry Finn, community Cohesion Officer, thanked Joanne for her contribution to the Tameside community and was very grateful to her for taking up the role of chairperson of the Tameside IAG so enthusiastically.

He said: “She will be sorely missed and we will miss her passion and all the dedicated work she has done for our group.”

By way of recognition and a token of thanks, Joanne received a certificate of achievement and flowers from Claire Galt, Chief Inspector of Neighbourhoods and Partnerships in Tameside, who thanked Joanne for her valued contribution to the Tameside IAG and commented that "it was Telford's Gain and Tameside's loss that Joanne was moving on and wished her the very best of luck in her new role". 

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