Dame Sarah Mullally has been named the new Archbishop of Canterbury-designate becoming the first woman ever appointed to the role.
A former NHS chief nurse, the 63-year-old was ordained in 2006 and made history in 2018 when she became the first female Bishop of London the third most senior position in the Church of England.
The Church has been without an Archbishop of Canterbury for nearly a year, following Justin Welby’s resignation over a major safeguarding scandal. He stepped down after a damning report revealed that he “could and should” have reported prolific abuser John Smyth to the police in 2013. Smyth was found to have abused numerous boys and young men with ties to the Church.
During the interim period, Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell took on many of Welby’s responsibilities. He was also part of the panel responsible for selecting Welby’s successor, despite facing calls to resign himself over his handling of a separate abuse case.
Women were first ordained as priests in the Church of England in 1994, with the first female bishops appointed in 2014. In line with tradition, the process of appointing a new archbishop involves the recommendation being sent to the Prime Minister currently Sir Keir Starmer and then passed to the monarch for approval.
Speaking from Canterbury Cathedral on Friday, Dame Sarah said, “In an age that craves certainty and tribalism, Anglicanism offers something quieter but stronger.”
She pledged to tackle the Church’s safeguarding failures, which she acknowledged had “left a legacy of deep harm and mistrust,” adding, “We must all be willing to have light shone on our actions, regardless of our role in the Church.”
Married with two children, Dame Sarah spent over 35 years in the NHS, becoming the youngest-ever Chief Nursing Officer for England in 1999. Although she was volunteering in her local church at the time, it was only a few years later that she felt called to ordained ministry. Early in her clerical career, she was already involved in reforming how the Church handled abuse allegations.
In 2012, she became Canon Treasurer at Salisbury Cathedral, before her appointment as Bishop of Crediton in the Diocese of Exeter in 2015. As Bishop of London, she was widely credited with using her healthcare leadership experience to help modernise the diocese.
“I’ve led complex organisations, both as the government’s Chief Nursing Officer and in the Church. But I know I can’t do this alone — I will need to walk this path with others,” she said.
Dame Sarah acknowledged the historic nature of her appointment, particularly its impact on younger generations. “When I visit schools, young girls often sit up and take notice. They don’t necessarily want to be the Bishop of London or the Archbishop of Canterbury, but seeing someone like me in this role helps them realise what’s possible.”
Her tenure also comes at a time of declining church attendance across the UK although London has somewhat bucked the trend.
She has been a vocal opponent of assisted dying, calling proposed legislation “unworkable and unsafe” and warning that it risks harming the most vulnerable members of society — a view she shares with her predecessor.
One of her significant roles as Bishop of London was chairing a group guiding the Church’s response to same-sex marriage. She described the Church’s 2023 decision to allow priests to bless same-sex couples as “a moment of hope.”
Reflecting on the demands of her new role, former Archbishop Rowan Williams once said the job requires “a newspaper in one hand and a Bible in the other.”
