THE vicar brought in to turn around a scandal-hit Kidderminster parish is leaving to take on a fresh challenge.

Rev Andrew Vessey is leaving St John's after three years to take over as team rector in Swansea. He was drafted in to restore the parish after the Rev Charles Raven lost his license in 2002 in a headline-hitting row with the diocese over its backing for the ordination of homosexuals.

"I was brought in to do a specific job because the parish was in need of regeneration with a new leadership," said the 59-year-old, who was previously based in Stourport.

"It has been a very rewarding time. Now the church here is growing. It's busy every day of the week and we have rebuilt connections with the schools." Mr Vessey said he used his background in the arts to help rebuild the parish through concerts and events.

He is hoping to use his experience when he takes over his new post as head of five churches in Swansea in May.

He was ordained in 1986 after a career in teaching and the arts, which took him from Suffolk to the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean. He and his wife, Anna, a teacher, have three children.

"I am always ready for a challenge but my wife says this will definitely be our last move," said Mr Vessey, who takes his last service in St John's on Easter Sunday. "I hope I am leaving the parish here in a good state."