Anglican Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki

The Anglican Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki is an ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. It serves Anglican communities across a substantial part of New Zealand’s North Island, extending from the Waikato region south and west toward the area surrounding Mount Taranaki. The diocese is one of the church’s thirteen dioceses and hui amorangi, the latter term referring to Māori bishoprics within the wider provincial structure. The jurisdiction was established in 1926 as the Diocese of Waikato. Cecil Arthur Cherrington became its first bishop. Its institutional history therefore reflects the development of Anglican organization in the central and western North Island during the twentieth century. The diocese’s territory and administrative arrangements have included both Waikato and Taranaki interests, with ecclesiastical centers in Hamilton and Taranaki. The name was changed in 2010 to the Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki. The change reflected an episcopal structure developed under the Shared Diocesan Episcopacy Statute 2007. That arrangement provided for two bishoprics and two co-ordinary, or presiding, bishops. The model recognized the distinct regional identities of Waikato and Taranaki while retaining a single diocesan framework. A 2017 amendment clarified the position when one see became vacant: the other bishop would also hold the vacant see as sole diocesan bishop. Since the translation of Bishop David Hartley in 2018, the diocese has in practice been led by a sole diocesan bishop. Philip Richardson is identified as the incumbent Bishop of Waikato and Taranaki. He previously served as the suffragan Bishop in Taranaki from 1999 until the co-diocesan arrangement began in 2008. He became Archbishop of the New Zealand dioceses on 1 May 2013 and, following the 2018 vacancy, served as the sole diocesan bishop. In December 2018, Richardson established a commission to review the dual-episcopacy arrangement after the diocese became unable to afford two bishops. The diocese has two principal cathedral settings associated with its episcopal life. When the bishop is resident in Hamilton, the cathedra, or bishop’s seat, is at St Peter’s Cathedral. When the bishop is resident in Taranaki, the seat is at Taranaki Cathedral. This dual-center arrangement expresses the diocese’s geographic scope and its continuing connection with both regional communities. As a church organization rather than a commercial consumer brand, the diocese’s principal activities are worship, pastoral oversight, parish administration, ministry formation, and regional ecclesiastical governance. Publicly documented information emphasizes its constitutional history, episcopal arrangements, cathedrals, parishes, and archdeaconries rather than commercial products or market offerings.

The Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki was created in 1926 as the Diocese of Waikato, with Cecil Arthur Cherrington serving as its first bishop. Its formation established a distinct Anglican diocesan structure for the Waikato area within the Anglican Church in New Zealand. Over time, the diocese’s ecclesiastical responsibilities and regional identity became associated not only with Waikato but also with Taranaki and the communities around Mount Taranaki. The diocese’s historical administration included archdeaconries and regional offices of responsibility. The recorded archdeacons of Taranaki include Robert Cole, who served from 1902 to 1912, Frank Evans from 1912 to 1926, and Gordon Gavin from 1930 to 1960. The recorded archdeacons of Tauranga include Charles Tisdall from 1910 to 1914, Frederick Chatterton from 1921 to 1936, Reginald Hodgson from 1936 to 1965, and Donald Ferguson from 1972 to 1976. Within the Waikato administrative history, Edmund Cowie served as Archdeacon of Waikato from 1913 to 1929 and Henry Gillespie from 1933 to 1943. Frederick O. Dawson, a former principal chaplain of the Church of England in the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force, served as Archdeacon of Piako from 1954 to 1960. A major constitutional development came with the Shared Diocesan Episcopacy Statute 2007. The statute supported an arrangement with two bishoprics and two co-ordinary bishops, allowing the Waikato and Taranaki dimensions of the jurisdiction to retain distinct episcopal representation while remaining part of one diocese. The arrangement began operating in the late 2000s. In 2010, the diocese formally adopted the name Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki, making the two-region structure explicit in its title. The statutory framework was amended in 2017. The amendment clarified that when one episcopal see was vacant, the bishop occupying the other see would also hold the vacant see and act as sole diocesan bishop. This provision became significant after Bishop David Hartley’s translation in 2018. Philip Richardson, who had previously been the only suffragan Bishop in Taranaki from 1999 and had been associated with the co-diocesan structure from 2008, subsequently served as the sole diocesan bishop. The financial sustainability of maintaining two bishops became an institutional issue. In December 2018, Richardson established a commission to review the dual-episcopacy arrangement after the diocese was unable to afford two bishops. The review reflected the practical consequences of the constitutional model and the need to align episcopal governance with the diocese’s available resources. The diocese continues to have two important cathedral locations. St Peter’s Cathedral in Hamilton serves as the seat of the bishop when the bishop is resident in Hamilton, while Taranaki Cathedral serves as the seat when the bishop is resident in Taranaki. These locations represent the two principal regional poles of the diocese. Today, the Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki remains part of the wider Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia and provides ecclesiastical oversight for Anglican parishes and ministries across its North Island territory.

• 2018

  Sole diocesan leadership follows episcopal vacancy

  [1]Diocese of Waikato and Taranakien.wikipedia.org

  After David Hartley’s translation, Philip Richardson became the sole diocesan bishop under the amended statutory arrangement.

• 2018

  Commission reviews dual-episcopacy model

  [1]Diocese of Waikato and Taranakien.wikipedia.org

  In December, Richardson established a commission to review the dual-episcopacy arrangement after the diocese could no longer afford two bishops.

• 2017

  Shared episcopacy statute amended

  [1]Diocese of Waikato and Taranakien.wikipedia.org

  An amendment clarified that the bishop of one see would hold the other see as sole diocesan bishop when the second see was vacant.

• 2013

  Philip Richardson becomes Archbishop of the New Zealand dioceses

  Richardson took up the archiepiscopal role on 1 May 2013 while remaining associated with the Waikato and Taranaki episcopal structure.

• 2010

  Diocese renamed

  [1]Diocese of Waikato and Taranakien.wikipedia.org

  The Diocese of Waikato formally became the Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki, reflecting its two-region episcopal structure.

• 2008

  Co-diocesan arrangement begins

  [1]Diocese of Waikato and Taranakien.wikipedia.org

  The shared episcopal arrangement associated with Waikato and Taranaki began operating, with Philip Richardson involved as the Taranaki suffragan bishop.

• 2007

  Shared Diocesan Episcopacy Statute passed

  [1]Diocese of Waikato and Taranakien.wikipedia.org

  The statute provided the constitutional basis for a shared episcopal structure involving two bishoprics and two co-ordinary bishops.

• 1926

  Diocese of Waikato established

  [1]Diocese of Waikato and Taranakien.wikipedia.org

  The Diocese of Waikato was established, with Cecil Arthur Cherrington appointed as its first bishop.

A regional Anglican diocese connecting the Waikato and Taranaki areas within the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia, with a historically distinctive two-region episcopal structure.

• 2018

  Review of the dual-episcopacy arrangementStrategy

  Background

  The diocese was unable to afford two bishops, creating a financial and governance concern around the shared episcopal model.

  Action taken

  Philip Richardson established a commission in December 2018 to review the arrangement.

  Aftermath

  Richardson continued as sole diocesan bishop after the vacancy created by David Hartley’s translation, while the commission examined the future of the model.

  Source

• 2017

  Clarification of vacant-see governanceStrategy

  Background

  The dual-episcopacy model required a clear rule for periods when one of its sees was vacant.

  Action taken

  The Shared Diocesan Episcopacy Statute was amended so that the bishop of the occupied see would also hold the vacant see as sole diocesan bishop.

  Aftermath

  The amendment was applied after the 2018 episcopal change and supported sole diocesan leadership by Philip Richardson.

  Source

• 2010

  Adoption of the Waikato and Taranaki nameStrategy

  Background

  The diocese’s developing shared episcopal structure represented both Waikato and Taranaki, while its formal name still referred only to Waikato.

  Action taken

  The diocese changed its name from the Diocese of Waikato to the Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki.

  Aftermath

  The new name made the diocese’s two-region identity explicit.

  Source

1. 1Diocese of Waikato and Taranakien.wikipedia.org
2. 2Official website of the Anglican Diocese of Waikato and Taranakiwtanglican.nz