The largest anti-poverty coalition since Make Poverty History in 2005, made up of Britain’s leading development charities and faith groups, has launched a major new campaign: Enough Food for Everyone IF.

In its first report out today the group, which currently numbers 100 organisations and has the backing of philanthropist Bill Gates and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, warns that in a world where there is enough food for everyone, the scandal of children growing up hungry also imposes a grave economic burden on the developing world.

As well as the 937 million children and young people (aged 15-40) whose life chances will be permanently damaged by the impact of childhood hunger by 2025, the report estimates that malnutrition will be costing developing countries an annual $125 billion (£78 billion) in lost economic output by 2030.

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United Reformed Church House has welcomed Stephen Tomkins (pictured) as the new editor of REFORM; he begins his editorship today (21 January) and is starting work on the March issue.

Dr Tomkins was previously deputy editor of Third Way magazine and a contributing editor to the Christian webzine shipo­ffools.com. He is also a church historian and the author of eight books, including A Short History of Christianity (Lion Books, 2005) and David Livingstone: The Unexplored Story (Lion Books, 2013).

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The Revd David Tatem (pictured), the United Reformed Church’s secretary for ecumenical relationships, encourages us all to participate in the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, 18 to 25 January

 “This year the theme of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is ‘What does God require of us?’ It’s a good question, and one which will, in part, be answered by the theme chosen for the Assembly of the World Council of Churches (‘God of Life, lead us to Justice and Peace’) when it meets in Busan, South Korea, at the end of October.

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Britain’s oldest man, retired URC minister the Revd Reg Dean, died peacefully at his home in Wirksworth, Derbyshire on 5 January. Reg, who was born in Staffordshire on 4 November 1902, made his home in Derbyshire in 1947, and lived the rest of his life there.

Mr Dean was ordained as an Anglican in 1929, served as a chaplain in India and Burma during the Second World War, and became a Congregational minister in 1952. He spent his congregational/URC ministerial career in Derbyshire, serving first at Carlton Road, Derby and then at West Derbyshire URC, Wirksworth until his retirement in 1982. But, of course, his belief in “doing things for joy” didn’t end with retirement: in his eighties he founded the highly successful Fairtrade shop in Wirksworth, and was the president of the local male voice choir, The Dalesmen.

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