THE LIONS
Andy Edmiston
IM Group & Imagine The Day
Amongst other things, Andy has spent the last 20 years with the IM Group in the role of group Managing Director. The IM Group is responsible for Subaru, Isuzu and Great Wall Motor brands across many European markets and has a portfolio of properties across the world managed by IM Properties. Andy has helped steer the company through economic difficulties, while at the same time preparing for the next phase of its growth.
Outside of this with his wife Alison, he has established a charity called ‘Imagine the Day’, and helped to pioneer Mosaic Church in Coventry. They have five children and seven grandchildren.
Gary Spicer
Imagine the Day
Gary Spicer is the Executive Director for Grace Foundation, Founding Pastor of Mosaic Church Coventry and Executive Director for Imagine The Day Ltd.
As a charismatic leader and communicator, his insights and wisdom make him a much sought-after speaker both at home and abroad.
Formerly, as Executive Director of Grace Academy, Gary led a team of 400 staff, helping turnaround failing schools within deprived areas, into successful academies.
As Executive Director for Grace Foundation, he is accountable for placing Christian Ethos staff, across several academies in the Midlands. The vision of the foundation is positively impacting the lives of over 10,000 students, through the provision of holistic education.
Gary has a passion to equip the next generation of pioneers and is responsible for equipping and mentoring over 20 Kingdom entrepreneurs in the UK.
Gary is married to Helen and has 3 grown up children, Josh, Naomi and Alysha. They love spending time with them and their 6 grandchildren.
Tim Jupp
Big Church festival & Delirious?
Tim Jupp currently heads up the team that runs the UK’s fastest growing Christian festival, the Big Church Festival. Before this, Tim spent 17 years as the keyboard player with the band Delirious?, managing the band for its last four years, and became Managing Director of Furious Records.
Tim is married and lives in Sussex with his wife Becca, who is the senior leader of their local Church, Arun Community Church. They have four children.
Gemma Francis
THE Big Sing
Gemma Francis is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of The BIG Sing – promoting community singing at its very best. Through uplifting, feel-good music, The BIG Sing unites communities and showcases the power of singing to inspire, heal and connect people from all walks of life.
Under Gemma’s leadership, The BIG Sing has grown into a thriving movement of over 1,000 members every week, with choirs running across five counties in the UK.
A former professional singer and Marketing Manager for the London Community Gospel Choir, Gemma has spent more than 20 years pioneering gospel and contemporary community music across the UK, using her marketing expertise to bring this joyful sound to mainstream audiences.
Gemma joined The Lions programme to help launch The BIG Sing SOUL Charity, with a mission to make singing accessible to everyone – including nurseries, schools, care homes, hospitals, disabled groups and vulnerable communities. With the support of The Lions’ mentoring and seed funding, Gemma has successfully expanded The BIG Sing’s reach and social impact nationwide.
Today, Gemma continues to pioneer The BIG Sing while also serving as Marketing Manager for The Lions, empowering other visionaries to turn their ideas into reality. Gemma is married to songwriter, musician and co-founder Howard Francis, and together they have four children.
Shell Perris
THE LIONS & alive leader
Over the last 20+ years, Shell has pioneered many ventures as she has followed the call on her life to tell children and families about Jesus through events and resources, and to help people and organisations become everything God has created them to be.
In 2004, Shell became a member of Christian girl band, “TBC” and travelled all over the UK and Europe telling young people about Jesus. She has released four solo albums, had several books published (including her new book, ‘God’s Promises for Everyone’, published by SPCK) and speaks at churches, conferences, and events throughout the UK.
In June 2023, Shell was involved in leading ALIVE 2023, a massive Praise Party Event where 9,000 children from across Coventry and Warwickshire gathered to worship God! Shell joined the ITD (Imagine The day) staff team as The Lions and ALIVE Leader and The Lions Assistant Course Co-ordinator.
Originally from the North-West, Shell now lives in Worcestershire, UK with her husband, Tim, and their four children. Shell loves family days out, taking photos, candles, hanging out with friends, and Perris Pizza Nights!!
Gavin Kibble
Coventry Foodbank
As the founder of Coventry foodbank, Gavin has helped build partnerships with 17 churches/ community organisation which now distribute food to people in crisis. Since the project started eight years ago, it has fed well over 100,000 people in Coventry.
In 2013, working with other Christian leaders in the city he set up Hope Coventry, a multi-denominational expression of the church. As a result, Gavin was involved in establishing the city’s winter night shelter, and “Good Neighbours”, a project to befriend vulnerable older people. This latter project has become the largest multi-denominational church project ever undertaken in the city.
In 2016, Gavin established Feeding Coventry with a broader remit to deal with the causes of Food Poverty. So far the charity has successfully funded school holiday programmes and a community café. It now embarks on its most ambitious project to establish Coventry’s first community supermarket with a £250k funding from the National Lottery.
Gavin’s work closely links with the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences at Coventry University on projects to help alleviate food poverty through research, and analysis of food waste. Some of this work was reflected in a TEDx talk given by Gavin in Coventry in 2018.
He has been married to his wife, Vivienne, for 31 years and together they manage two large ballet schools in Solihull and Warwickshire. In 2018, Gavin and Vivienne were appointed as Community Pastors of Mosaic Church, Coventry of which they are part of the leadership team.
Gavin also runs a specialist accounting company “Mozaic Innovate”, which provides charitable accounting support, guidance and governance to many churches and charities. This technical expertise provides the basis of his work with Lions delegates. Gavin serves as a trustee with many charities both locally and nationally.
Paul Manwaring
bethal church
Paul’s life spans 4 career seasons. He began training as an SRN/RMN and working as a staff nurse in intensive care. Next, he joined the Prison Service of England & Wales, where he became a Prison Governor, with a particular interest and experience with young offenders. In 2001 he and his wife moved to Redding, California. They had no plan of a career in church leadership, they were just pursuing God. This journey resulted in Paul joining the Senior Leadership Team of Bethel Church where they spent 15 years.
After 15 years’ experience in the unique atmosphere on the Senior Leadership Team of Bethel Church, they were drawn back to live and minister in Europe. His experience at Bethel included developing a global network for church leaders, teaching in many church and conference events, overseeing 3rd year school of ministry and a general involvement in the growth of a globally impacting ministry.
The return to Europe began an itinerant travelling and teaching ministry as well as serving the Europe Shall Be Saved and Awakening Europe teams. They are excited, encouraged and challenged by the great harvest field of Europe.
Paul has much diversity in his ministry but sums it up as fathering people and fathering organisations and all that embraces. He has a passion to empower everyone to know that they are sent from heaven to earth to bring the transformation of the Kingdom of Heaven, whoever they are, whatever they do, and wherever they go.
Central to this is erasing the secular sacred, equipping the church to be apostolic families which raise up world changers. Paul ministers with the prophetic, healing, and his passion of maximising moments in the presence (closing worship).
He has been married to Sue for over 40 years, has two sons, two daughter in laws, two grandsons and a granddaughter.