THE Rt Revd Sarah Mullally, the Bishop of London since 2018, was nominated as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury on 3 October. The Rt Revd Cherry Vann, the Bishop of Monmouth since 2020, was elected as Archbishop of Wales on 30 July. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected as Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church in May, choosing the name Pope Leo XIV.
OTHER episcopal appointments noted in the Church Times this year included those of Canon Nicholas Bundock as Bishop of Glasgow & Galloway; the Rt Revd Ruth Worsley, as Bishop of Wigan and Interim Bishop of Liverpool, translated from Taunton; the Ven. Malcolm Chamberlain as Bishop of Wakefield; the Rt Revd Rob Saner-Haigh as Bishop of Carlisle, translated from Penrith; the Ven. Moira Astin as Bishop of Crediton; the Revd Leah Vasey-Saunders as Bishop of Doncaster; the Rt Revd Joanne Grenfell as Bishop of St Edmundsbury & Ipswich, translated from Stepney; the Rt Revd Hugh Nelson as Bishop of Worcester, translated from St Germans; Dr Ric Thorpe as Archbishop of Melbourne, translated from Islington; the Ven. Kelly Betteridge as Bishop of Basingstoke; the Ven. Jean Burgess as Bishop of Grimbsy.
The Bishop of Croydon (Dr Rosemarie Mallett) and the Bishop of Kirkstall (the Rt Revd Arun Arora) as the first lead bishops for racial justice; the Bishop of Newcastle (Dr Helen-Anne Hartley) as President of the Rural Coalition; and the Bishop of Tewkesbury (the Rt Revd Robert Springett) as the lead bishop for safeguarding.
AMONG clergy appointments were those of archdeacons: the Revd Bridget Shepherd (Wandsworth); the Revd Katrina Scott (Cheltenham); the Revd Dr Susan Lucas (Southend); the Revd Nicholas Watson (Salop); the Revd Elizabeth Jackson (Walsall); the Revd Samantha Brazier-Gibbs (Ipswich); the Revd Louise Ellis (Wiltshire); the Revd Dr Thomas Carpenter (Chichester); the Revd Emma Ham-Riche (NS Associate Archdeacon for Diversity and Inclusion in the diocese of Chichester); the Revd Katharine Poulton (Meath & Kildare); the Revd Anne-Marie Louise Renshaw (Morgannwg); the Revd Katherine Bagnall (Sunderland); the Revd David Gerrard (Sheffield and Rotherham); the Revd Robert White (part-time of Portsdown); the Revd Richard Trethewey (Leicester); the Revd Jane Atkinson (Blackburn); the Revd Dr Geoffrey Dumbreck (Reigate); the Revd Estella Last (Maidstone); the Revd Elizabeth Hassall (York); and the Revd Russell Dewhurst (Hastings).
Church in WalesThe Most Revd Cherry Vann
Those appointed as cathedral dean or provost included the Very Revd Henry Blair (Down); the Revd Roxanne Campbell (St Paul’s Cathedral, Dundee); the Revd Michael Everitt (Interim of Carlisle); the Very Revd Abigail Sines (Clonmacnoise); Canon Philip Hobday (Wakefield); and Canon Chris Palmer (Winchester).
Among other clergy appointments were those of the Ven. Jonathan Gough as Interim Pastoral and Theological Adviser at Bishopthorpe Palace; the Revd Dr Harri Williams as Principal of St Stephen’s House, Oxford; the Revd Dr Harriet Harris as Principal of Ripon College, Cuddesdon; and the Archdeacon of Liverpool, the Ven. Dr Miranda Threlfall-Holmes, as Chair of the new Racial Justice Board.
THE Revd Richard Andrew and Matthew Forsyth were appointed President and Vice-President respectively of the Methodist Conference for 2025-26.
LAY appointments included those of Helen Smee as Director of Music of Southwark Cathedral; Anna Dixon as chair of Christians on the Left; Sharon Devlin as Newcastle Diocesan Director of Safeguarding; John Worth as Chief Executive of the Church Commissioners; Anna Pitt as Executive Director of the Association of English Cathedrals; Dr Tim Ling as Chief Executive of St Luke’s for Clergy Wellbeing; Andy Roberts as Chief Executive of the Church Mission Society; Major Jo Moir as Head of Spring Harvest; Silas Balraj as Chief Executive of Tearfund; Professor Claire Ozanne as Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Canterbury Christ Church University; and Dame Christine Ryan as Executive Chair of the C of E’s new Safeguarding Structures Programme.
