Prior to becoming the 16th Bishop of Truro, Bishop Philip was the executive leader of the Church Mission Society, enabling networking across the Anglican Communion and beyond.

He was ordained as a deacon in 1988 and priested in 1989. He served his curacy at Gerrard’s Cross and Fulmer in the Diocese of Oxford, and then served as the Vicar of St James’ Church, West Streatham, in the Diocese of Southwark, from 1992 to 1998.

In 1998 Philip joined the Church Pastoral Aid Society (CPAS), initially tasked with helping churches develop youth and children’s ministry, then serving as Head of Ministry and ultimately as the deputy general director from 2004 to 2007.

In 2007 Philip moved with his wife, Ruth, and daughter, Kitty, to Paris, where he was the chaplain of St Michael’s Church, in the centre of Paris, a multicultural church with a congregation who spoke around 40 different languages.

In late 2012, he left Paris for his role at the Church Mission Society. Philip oversaw the operation of all CMS’s mission in 40 countries, leading a community of around 3,000 members and supporting around 350 people in mission around the world.

Bishop Philip was consecrated on November 30 by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd Justin Welby, at St Paul’s Cathedral, London and took up his seat in Truro Cathedral on January 12, 2019.

In December 2018 he was asked by the then Foreign Secretary to investigate how well – or otherwise – the Foreign Office had responded to the global issue of the global persecution of Christians. The recommendations of the final report, published 7 months later, were subsequently accepted in full by the UK government. He retains a significant interest in this area, and also chairs the Church of England’s Partnership for World Mission, the umbrella body which gathers together the C. of E’s various specialist mission agencies.