A theological liberal on social issues, he wrote in his later years on spirituality, philosophical ethics, sexuality, Anglicanism, and economics. He was a member of the Council of Durham Cathedral and chaired and served on a number of panels and committees of the Church of England's Ministry Division. He was a Trustee of a number of charities, including the Royal School of Church Music (the RSCM) and the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK). He was a Fellow of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, the Royal Society of Arts and a Founding Fellow of the Institute of Continuing Professional Development.