THE chaplain at North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust has been officially welcomed with a licensing service.

The Bishop of Jarrow, the Right Reverend John Pritchard, led the ceremony yesterday to officially sanction the Reverend Lynn Purvis to work within the Durham Diocese. Ms Purvis is the sixth member of staff to join the chaplaincy team providing emotional and spiritual support to staff, patients and their relatives, 24 hours a day.

The licensing ceremony coincided with the relaunch of the Trust chaplaincy service at the University Hospital of North Tees and the University Hospital of Hartlepool.

Chaplaincy co-ordinator the Reverend Mary Warner was also re-licensed at the service.