On 19 April 1945, in the Allied advance to the River Po, he was again wounded during a reconnaissance mission and was subsequently awarded the Military Cross (MC).
[1] Following the war, having read History at Trinity, he studied for the priesthood at Westcott House, Cambridge.
In 1953, after a short spell as a curate in Huddersfield, Phipps was appointed Chaplain at Trinity.
That appointment was followed by ten years at Coventry as an Industrial Chaplain, during which time he lived in a small council flat on a new housing estate.
The modesty of his surroundings did not prevent him from entertaining his long-time friend, Princess Margaret, "to the great interest of his neighbours".