Let me introduce myself …

I’m Andy. I first came to Newcastle in 2003 and, apart from two years out in Singapore and London, I’ve been here ever since. I’ve always had a passion for cities, urbanism and the built environment, and so I spent my first six years studying and working in town planning before taking on my present role as facilities manager of a large church here in Newcastle. 

While my role for these last eight years has been focussed on a few individual buildings, my interest in the bigger scale has never gone away. I can’t walk around a city or neighbourhood without noticing the planning (or lack thereof) that has gone into it, without assessing recent developments, without pointing out the potential for development or regeneration.

Aside from the amazing privilege it is to serve God in such a practical way, one of the things working for the church has done is help me to think more Biblically about cities and the built environment. The more I’ve studied, the more I’ve realised just how much the Bible (and therefore God) has to say on the subject.

I thought it was about time I started putting some of these ideas, and what I’ve read, on (virtual) paper. I’m not sure how this blog is going to pan out, it’s likely to be a bit of a mixture: I’ll share ideas and comment on urban development news and proposals, we’ll explore what the Bible has to say about the city and reflect on some of its implications for our work and life, I’ll probably throw in some urban photography, maybe some book reviews, and whatever else takes my fancy! Hopefully you’ll find it interesting, perhaps it will give you some new ideas. Do you agree? Disagree? Have comments, suggestions, recommendations? Either way I’d love to hear from you, and it’s a lot more fun to throw ideas around, bounce them off each other and see what results!