Meet the Celebrate Recovery UK Team
Our Celebrate Recovery UK team are dedicated to helping churches bring hope and healing to the hurting through the Celebrate Recovery ministry.
We are looking to bring more people onto the team in the different capacities – people who love Jesus, His Church and the ministry of Celebrate Recovery.
Meet the National Team
Catherine Robinson
Celebrate Recovery UK Director & North East & Scotland Representative
Catherine celebrates freedom from anorexia and bulimia through God’s transforming love and the peace found in trusting His Word. Her journey of healing fuels a passion to help others discover that Jesus Christ offers real hope and lasting recovery.
Originally from Lancashire, Catherine and her husband, Dave, now live in Newcastle, Tyne and Wear, where their grown-up family also reside. As foster carers, they find great joy in being a stepping stone for children toward brighter futures.
Catherine also serves on the Pastoral Team at Jesmond Parish Church and has led the church’s Celebrate Recovery ministry since its launch in 2005. She has served as Celebrate Recovery’s UK Representative for the North East and Scotland since 2012 and, in 2025, was appointed Director.
Email Catherine at catherine@celebraterecovery.co.uk
Kath Leigh
Celebrate Recovery UK North West & Northern Ireland Representative
Kath is based in Lancaster and has 2 sons, 1 daughter-in-law and 2 young grandchildren.
Kath works for the Adullam Programme, a local charity which supports people with their mental health and/or any of life’s challenges, and she loves to celebrate as people take steps towards understanding their worth and purpose and then seek to pursue life to the fullest.
Kath came to Celebrate Recovery in 2011 and has served as ministry leader since 2014, and UK North West Rep since 2016. Having found grace and healing for herself through working the 8 principles, Kath has a heart to see others find hope and freedom.
Email Kath at kath@celebraterecovery.co.uk
Meet the Board of Trustees
Our Board of Trustees are passionate about bringing God’s love into local communities and playing their part in healing the hurting. Their remit is to guide and develop the work of Celebrate Recovery across the UK and to build on what has already been achieved.
Dave Priestley
Chair of the Board of Trustees
My name is Dave Priestley and I have been connected with Celebrate Recovery since 2011. I have personally completed the CR programme and can thus evidence first-hand how it changes people’s lives.
I’ve served in a number of volunteer roles across churches and strive to see God’s love reach the marginalised. God’s vision is that we all live together in love and harmony. Celebrate Recovery provides a fabulous pathway to that for hurting people. Dave lives in Derby and has previously worked in local manufacturing companies for almost 30 years. Together with his wife, in 2011, they started their own local business to help young people do better in school and improve their future outcomes. Outside of work, he enjoys going to the seaside, but is equally happy gardening and watching live sport.
Tony Turner
Trustee and Celebrate Recovery UK Representative for the Midlands, Wales & South East England
Tony lives in Derby, England. He has been married for more than 40 years to Val and has been blessed with 2 children and 3 grandchildren.
Tony has previously served, along with his wife Val, as one of the pastors of Reach in Derby for over 35 years.
After visiting Saddleback, Tony and Val started Celebrate Recovery in the UK in 1998. Tony served as the UK Director for Celebrate Recovery from 2008 – 2025.
He and Val are still involved with their local Celebrate Recovery group and are as passionate about this ministry today as they were nearly thirty years ago.
Andy Townsend
Trustee
My name is Andy Townsend. Having been involved with Celebrate Recovery for a number of years, I have had the privilege of seeing many lives transformed by Jesus through this amazing ministry. I am teacher by profession and have always had a passion to see people learn and grow, and ultimately to discover who God designed them to be. This is why I feel so enthusiastic about Celebrate Recovery, a life-transforming ministry which helps people to connect with God and enjoy the full life He has promised us all!
In addition to Dave, Andy, and Tony, Kath Leigh also sits on the Board of Trustees.
Meet Our Celebrate Recovery UK Representatives
We couldn’t serve our UK groups without a team of representatives. We are so thankful to them for being a supportive contact for Ministry Leaders in their region.
Tony’s Vision for Celebrate Recovery
Back in the late 90’s, as a pastor in Derby, I was becoming overwhelmed with so many people in our congregation struggling with all sorts of issues and bound up with hurts, hang-ups and habits. Yet as I read the scriptures, Jesus clearly came to set the captives free. As we see in Psalm 146:7,
“The Lord sets prisoners free.”
In 1997, this prompted me to seek God for answers. Within a few weeks a leaflet was given to me about a ministry called Celebrate Recovery that was being run at Saddleback Church in California. It became clear that God was speaking to me about this ministry, so in October that year my wife Val and I went to a Purpose Driven Church Conference and whilst there met with Pastor John Baker to see if “Celebrate Recovery” could be used here in the UK.
Well, many of us know the answer to that question. The next 20 plus years was going to be an amazing adventure as we commenced our journey of Celebrate Recovery, a journey that would not only change our lives but many more lives here in Derby and across the UK.
For the past 13 years I have had the privilege of serving as Celebrate Recovery UK Director with a vision to help UK churches to start this great ministry.
My dream is to have a Celebrate Recovery running in every village, town and city, seven days a week. On 9th November, we celebrated our 20 year journey in running this amazing ministry.
Meet the International Director
Richard Cobb serves on the Global Team of Celebrate Recovery as the International Director of Celebrate Recovery, a role he accepted in 2015 after years of ministry leadership. Based in Decatur, Alabama, USA, Richard and his wife, Dara, began leading a local Celebrate Recovery group soon after their marriage in 2004. Their passion for sharing Christ’s healing power has taken them around the world. They have trained leaders and supported Celebrate Recovery ministries across more than 60 countries and 27 languages.
Richard is our main contact on the Global Team, and we value his support and guidance.