Fr Phil Cunnah.
Fr Phil St Charles Borromeo 2025
When Fr Phil Cunnah arrived to serve St Charles Borromeo, Hull, he did so as a priest formed and shaped within the life of the Diocese of Middlesbrough — a diocese marked by wide geography, varied communities, and a strong sense of shared faith across parish boundaries. His present appointment brings together the parish communities of St Charles Borromeo (Hull), Ss Mary & Joseph (Hedon) and Ss Peter & John Fisher (Withernsea), served as one group of associated parishes.
Ordained to the priesthood on 25 July 2015, Fr Phil’s ordination was a moment of celebration for the diocese. Family, friends and clergy gathered for the occasion, which also carried a personal significance: his brother, Deacon Tom Cunnah — now a priest in the Diocese of Shrewsbury — assisted at the Mass. From the outset, Fr Phil’s priesthood was rooted in both family and diocesan life, a pattern that has continued throughout his ministry.
Fr Phil ordination 2015 Middlesbrough Cathedral
Following ordination, Fr Phil served at Middlesbrough Cathedral, where he was part of the clergy team during the early years of his priesthood. Cathedral ministry places a priest at the heart of diocesan worship and events, and it is often where newly ordained priests encounter the full breadth of diocesan life — from major liturgies to civic occasions and pilgrimages. He was subsequently appointed parish priest of St Paulinus, Guisborough, marking his first parish-priest appointment within the diocese.
Pilgrimage has featured more than once in Fr Phil’s ministry. He has taken part in diocesan pilgrimages, including the Assumption Pilgrimage, one of the diocese’s most recognisable annual gatherings. In 2019 he also travelled with young people from the diocese to World Youth Day in Panama, accompanying them alongside Bishop Terry and other clergy. World Youth Day pilgrimages are demanding, joyful, and formative experiences, both for those who attend and for the priests who journey with them.
Alongside parish and pilgrimage life, Fr Phil has been involved in youth ministry and school chaplaincy. His work in this area has been noted in wider Catholic publications, reflecting a ministry that reaches beyond the church building and into schools and the everyday lives of young people. This aspect of priestly life is often unseen, yet it forms an important part of how the Church accompanies families and nurtures faith in younger generations.
Fr Phil has also contributed to diocesan and national conversations about the Church’s mission. In 2021 he took part in a panel discussion exploring how parishes might help people reconnect with faith and parish life in the period following the pandemic. The discussion, hosted in collaboration with Alpha UK and Divine Renovation UK, focused on invitation, welcome and the challenge of rebuilding community after disruption — themes that resonate strongly across many parishes today.
November 2025: Fr Phil receiving the gift of a mounted and framed 1853 Roman relic theca containing the relic of St Charles Borromeo from former St Charles priest Canon Michael Loughlin.
In a separate Alpha feature recorded in a Catholic context, Fr Phil spoke openly about parish life and evangelisation, reflecting on the movement from online engagement back to in-person parish gatherings. Speaking simply and directly as a diocesan priest, he described the importance of creating spaces where people can come, listen, ask questions and begin their journey of faith at their own pace.
Fr Phil’s ministry has also brought him into contact with the wider life of the universal Church. During a visit to the diocese by the Papal Nuncio, Archbishop Claudio Gugerotti, he was among the clergy involved in meetings with school chaplains alongside the diocesan bishop — a reminder that diocesan priesthood is lived not in isolation, but in communion with the wider Church.
Before his current appointment in East Hull and the Holderness area, Fr Phil served as parish priest within the diocese, including ministry at Our Lady of Lourdes in Saltburn and in Marske-by-the-Sea and in Redcar within the Blessed Nicholas Postgate parish grouping. Coastal parishes bring their own rhythms and pastoral realities, and such appointments form part of the varied experience that diocesan priests carry with them as they move between communities.
Fr Phil’s formal induction at St Charles Borromeo took place on 4 November 2025, the feast of the parish’s patron saint. It was a fitting moment, linking parish identity with the arrival of a new parish priest, and marking the beginning of a shared chapter in the life of the community. Clergy and parishioners gathered to support the occasion, with an inspiring homily preached by Canon David Grant.
As Fr Phil now serves as parish priest for St Charles Borromeo (Hull), Ss Mary & Joseph (Hedon) and Ss Peter & John Fisher (Withernsea), he brings with him the experience of diocesan worship, parish leadership, youth ministry, pilgrimage and mission. Like all priests, much of his ministry happens quietly: in prayer, preparation, pastoral conversations, and the daily rhythm of parish life. These are the foundations on which parish communities are built and sustained.
As these parishes continue their life of worship, welcome and service, they do so within the wider family of the Diocese of Middlesbrough — and with gratitude for the priestly ministry of Fr Phil Cunnah, now shared across this group of parish communities.
Fr Phil Christmas Eve Mass Saint Charles 2025
