A midlands church leader has paid tribute to the local press and its “sterling work” in the community.

The Bishop of Lichfield, the Rt Revd Keith Sutton, is shortly to retire and hosted a reception for the media at the visitor centre of Lichfield Cathedral.

And he singled out Jim Guthrie, Staffordshire correspondent for the Birmingham Evening Mail, who this week celebrated 35 years in post, for a special mention – if only for staying the distance!

He said: “I’d like to express a word or two of thanks to you all for the sterling work you do in our shared communities.

“You don’t think, when you prepare to retire after 19 years, that the same journalist who reported your arrival and kept an eye on what you’ve been doing for two decades, will outstay you to report on your departure! But I want to thank Jim, and indeed all of you, for the relationship that this diocese has enjoyed with the media over that time.

“There are occasions when we as a church do things wrong and there are times when there are bad things to report. And we’ve had our fair share of those here over the past 19 years.

“And whilst we may be uncomfortable reading about our shortcomings in the pages of the newspapers, or listening about them on the radio or watching on television; it is vitally important that you continue to hold the church to account as the eyes and ears of the public.”

He said he was pleased with the way the regional press and local broadcasters were happy to join the church during good times as well as bad, and was grateful to a scheme with the BBC that led to staff secondments and award-winning programmes.

The Bishop also acknowledged the fast-changing technology that allowed reports from danger zones around the world, including in the current Gulf conflict, and assured his audience of his prayers for their colleagues abroad.

He added: “I want to finish by saying how grateful I am, personally, for the support I have received from the local media. A part of the job of a bishop is to know and be known.

“And yet I have to confess that I find it hard to read about myself in the media. I get embarrassed very easily – I’m actually quite a shy guy for a bishop. Yet I remain grateful for the way in which personal aspects of my time here have been reported – not least the death of my wife Jeannie in 2000 after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease. At that time, and others, you have demonstrated the often poor reputation that journalists have, is most undeserved.”