• Great Britian - Annual Conference
  • Organized FM Churches: 18
  • Ordained Ministers: 32
  • Ministerial Candidates: 5
  • FMC Membership: 2,814
• Northern Ireland - Mission District
  • Organized FM Churches: 6
  • Ordained Ministers: 10
  • FMC Membership: 175
  • Ministerial Candidates: 2

Origins

The Holiness Movement merged with the Free Methodist Church in Canada. The Canadian Executive Board requested Free Methodist leaders take supervision of the work in Ireland that came as a result of the merger. In 1959, the Board of Administration designated Northern Ireland as a Church Extension District.

J.A. Wood, a retired chemist from Stockport, England, who had heard about Free Methodists, first initiated the Free Methodist Church in the United Kingdom. In 1960, Rev. Lyle Northrup, a noted evangelist and head of the Department of Evangelism and Church Extension, and a team of evangelists from North America held a crusade in Belfast, Northern Ireland. They also met with J.A. Wood in England.

Rev. and Mrs. Carl Anderson were appointed as pastor/superintendents for Northern Ireland. In 1968 Rev. Victor Trinder became superintendent of all the United Kingdom districts. Sixteen churches had been organized by 1980, and the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland became two distinct conferences in 1986.

Present Ministries

Rev. J. Allan Ellershaw serves as superintendent of the Great Britain Conference and Ireland Mission District. Wesley Lindsay is the overseer of Ireland. The FMC in the United Kingdom is active in missions ministry and has sent several VISA teams. Sheila Etherington, who serves in Rwanda, is the first FM missionary sent from the United Kingdom-Great Britain Conference.

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