A correspondent writes:
THE Revd Susan Helen Bull died on 21 December 2022, aged 64, having been diagnosed with an incurable cancer. Sue was ordained priest in early 1999, and served her title at St Barnabas’s, Epsom.
She had previously trained as a company secretary and worked in the City of London, but, within just a few years of the admission of women to the priesthood, she was able to pursue her vocation. It was not an easy road and, like many others, at times, she faced opposition from within the Church.
Her passion was inclusion, and especially the care and inclusion of any and all who suffered in any way from mental ill-health. On their behalf, she could be “a troublesome priest”, and, in 2003, for whatever reason, the bishop removed her permission to officiate, a decision that was devastating for her, leaving a deep wound that marked the rest of her life.
From that, however, Sue came to a new direction for her priestly ministry. A neighbouring diocese appointed her as a mental-health chaplain, and she was able to resume service at St Barnabas’s.
It was at St Barnabas’s that Sue first developed a weekly drop-in for anyone with experience of mental distress — an initiative that became the charity Love Me Love My Mind. Sue championed this cause, building a strong community and raising awareness through the Epsom Mental Health and Wellbeing Festival. This annual event went from being a table in the local marketplace for handing out leaflets to a full week of activities with high-profile speakers. Acknowledged nationally as a unique community-engagement model, the festival has been visited by NHS England and serves as a pattern for other areas.
At the time of her death, Sue was in the process of writing a Ph.D. thesis on why the Church had such a poor record in mental-health work. Why, if a small church with very limited resources could do it, was it not happening elsewhere? A consultant psychiatrist once said to her: “It’s not rocket science, but it certainly saves lives.” St Mary’s University, Twickenham, has awarded her a posthumous M.Phil. for her work, and is hoping that arrangements can be made to publish it.
Epsom has lost a committed and selfless example of Christian witness. We can only hope that the work that she started will continue to serve the local community and that its impact spreads far and wide.