Sir William Robert Fittall (26 July 1953 – 10 March 2022) was a British civil servant and

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

lay reader. From 2002 to 2015, he served as the secretary-general of the Archbishops' Council and the General Synod of the Church of England. He had previously worked as a civil servant in the Home Office, the Northern Ireland Office, and the

Cabinet Office The Cabinet Office is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for supporting the prime minister and Cabinet. It is composed of various units that support Cabinet committees and which co-ordinate the delivery of government objecti ...

."Fittall, Sir William (Robert)"
'' Who's Who 2017''. Fittall died on 10 March 2022, at the age of 68.

Early life and education

Fittall was born on 26 July 1953. He was educated at Dover Grammar School for Boys, a state grammar school in

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

, Kent. From 1972 to 1975, he read modern languages and classics at

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree; as per tradition, his BA was later promoted to a Master of Arts (MA Oxon) degree. He later studied at the École nationale d'administration in Paris from 1980 to 1981.

Career

Fittall joined the Home Office as a

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

in 1975. He was a private secretary to a minister of state at the Home Office from 1979 to 1980, and a private secretary to the home secretary from 1985 to 1987. He was principal private secretary to the

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

from 1992 to 1993. He ended his Civil Service career as associate political director of the Northern Ireland Office from 2000 to 2002. From 1977, Fittall was an

lay reader. Until 2011, he served and worshipped at St Mark's Church, Battersea Rise, a

conservative evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual exper ...

church in the Church of England's

Diocese of Southwark The Diocese of Southwark is one of the 42 dioceses of the Church of England, part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The diocese forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England. It was created on 1 May 1905 from part of the ancient Dio ...

. At the time of his death, he was a lay reader in the

benefice A benefice () or living is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The Roman Empire used the Latin term as a benefit to an individual from the Empire for services rendered. Its use was adopted by ...

of St Stephen Lympne and St Peter & St Paul, Saltwood, in the Diocese of Canterbury.

Honours

In the 2016 New Year Honours List, Fittall was made a Knight Bachelor "for services to the Church of England". In June 2017, he was awarded the Canterbury Cross for Services to the Church of England by the Archbishop of Canterbury "for his outstanding and sustained contribution to the Church of England and to the Archbishops' Council in particular".

References

External links

Obituary
''

The Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

'', 11 March 2022
Obituary
'' Church Times'', 11 March 2022
Obituary
'' The Daily Telegraph'', 16 March 2022 1953 births 2022 deaths British civil servants Civil servants in the Home Office Civil servants in the Cabinet Office Civil servants in the Northern Ireland Office Knights Bachelor British Anglicans Anglican lay readers People educated at Dover Grammar School for Boys Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford École nationale d'administration alumni {{UK-gov-bio-stub