The Prime Minister’s Office has announced that the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury will be Dame Sarah Mullally, currently Bishop of London. The official website of the Archbishop of Canterbury has further information here, Canterbury diocese has this, and the Church of England this. It is expected that she will legally assume the office on 28 January 2026, with her installation or enthronement on 25 March.
Appointment of the Archbishop of Canterbury: 3 October 2025
The King has approved the nomination of The Right Reverend and Right Honourable Dame Sarah Mullally D.B.E. for election as Archbishop of Canterbury.
From: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street
Published 3 October 2025The King has approved the nomination of The Right Reverend and Right Honourable Dame Sarah Mullally D.B.E., for election by the College of Canons of Canterbury Cathedral in the place of The Right Reverend and Right Honourable Justin Portal Welby, GCVO, as Lord Archbishop of Canterbury, Primate of All England and Metropolitan.
Lord Evans of Weardale, KCB, DL, Chair of the Crown Nominations Commission for Canterbury welcomed the news:
“It has been a great privilege to have chaired the Crown Nominations Commission as it sought to discern who God is calling to lead the Church of England and Anglican Communion as Archbishop of Canterbury. That discernment began with the public consultation, which heard the voices of thousands of people as they expressed their hopes for this nomination, and continued all the way through to the Commission’s final meeting. I would like to thank all those who took part in this process, particularly those who took time to share their views in the consultation and the members of the Commission who worked so diligently over several months, ably assisted by the Appointments Secretaries and by the Appointments and Vocations team at Lambeth Palace. I shall be praying for Bishop Sarah as she prepares to take up this new ministry in the coming months.”
Sarah Mullally was, prior to ordination, the Government’s Chief Nursing Officer for England having specialised as a cancer nurse. She was educated at South Bank University, London, and Heythrop College, University of London, and trained for ministry at the South East Institute of Theological Education. She completed her title at St. Saviour Battersea Fields, in the Diocese of Southwark, and was ordained as a priest in 2002.
In 2006, Sarah was appointed Team Rector, Christ Church, Sutton, Southwark and then became Canon Residentiary and Treasurer at Salisbury Cathedral in 2012. In 2015, Sarah was consecrated as Suffragan Bishop of Crediton, in the Diocese of Exeter, and in 2018 took up her current role as Bishop of London as well as Dean of the Chapels Royal from 2019.
In a separate statement, the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer has said
“I welcome the appointment of The Right Reverend and Right Honourable Dame Sarah Mullally D.B.E as the new Archbishop of Canterbury and the first woman to hold the role.
“The Church of England is of profound importance to this country. Its churches, cathedrals, schools, and charities are part of the fabric of our communities.
“The Archbishop of Canterbury will play a key role in our national life. I wish her every success and look forward to working together.”
I have very mixed feelings about this. She has an immense amount of relevant experience, and a lot of skills, and I am genuinely pleased a woman has been appointed. She’s used to dealing with obstructive and devious senior civil servants, and it doesn’t get more establishment than a former Chief Nursing Officer. She was the one ultimately responsible for initiating the departure of Mr Sargent from London Diocese and also alone in not laughing along merrily with ++Welby’s disgraceful departure speech in the Lords – face like thunder throughout, which was to her credit. But…for me the fact that… Read more »
Indeed the attempt to change the Coroner’s report was telling.
I have similar feelings. Also note that she is already 63, so may be intended in a caretaker, steady the ship role.
Thank you Realist for mentioning Father Alan Griffin which is a case very dear to my heart. Since March 2020, a few months before Fr Alan died, I have been supporting a friend in a similar allegation of being accused of sexual touching with no evidence or investigation and yet being deemed to be a ‘High Risk’ sexual predator. His case was in a Diocese in the Midlands and there were nine parallels with the case of Fr Alan. In 2021 I compiled these as a chart and sent them to the Diocesan Safeguarding Officer and senior clergy in the… Read more »
I assume now that WATCH will succeed in their quest to have the 5 GPs (Guiding Principles) rescinded and alternative episcopal oversight to come to an end.
Sadly, I suspect that it would be easier for a bloke to guide that one through.
I come from the AEO side of the church and Sarah Mullaly is least ‘WATCHy’ of the current women bishops line up – has been happy to attend +Fulham services in choir dress and no awkwardness. I don’t think she has anything against the idea of ‘mutual flourishing’.
I hope so. Watching for the announcement on X, I noticed that the Diocese of Blackburn was first out of the starting gate with a welcome. +Blackburn is a highly political bishop. Me thinks he should follow his own argument about women bishops and join the periphery.
I’m with Realist on this. She has the necessary political skill set but I hope there is more to her than that. Fr Alan’s death is a stain of shame yet to be ( in my view) properly addressed. I’m glad and surprised at the courage to appoint a woman. Hurrah. Waiting now for the cries of outrage from those who have ‘issues’ with women in leadership.
The Independent Review of the roles of Bishops of Ebbsfleet and Beverley seems especially well timed in the light of today’s news.
When ++Justin made his awful and embarrassing valedictory speech in the Lords, Bishop Sarah was sitting on the bench alongside him with her head in her hands. Certain others were mindlessly laughing along. I hope that suggests more self awareness and less self importance at the top. There is such a headwind of ill-will which the CofE has to contend with now that one dreads to think how Archbishop Sarah will cope. She will need all our prayers and support – and my first prayer is that she does not cause further despair.
Yes, self-awareness and humility is vital, for us all. It’s too easy to rush for the ‘contentious issues’ agenda as though anyone can resolve them quickly.
What is needed is constant and faithful prayerful support and a self-discipline on all our parts not to rush to judgement or expect perfection.
Putting on my Sir Humphrey Appleby hat, I think I am correct to note that ++Sarah is due for retirement in March 2032, a few months before the Lambeth Conference is expected in I think summer 2032.
Is someone trying tactically to manage the potential “But BUT BUT!!!!! Woman Archbishop of Canterbury !!!!!!!!!!!!!!” ructions, whilst nonetheless introducing the concept to the centre of the Communion ? 😉
I wonder if a majority of comments here will be about her gender. Outside the C of E coterie, a nation which has become perfectly at home with female Prime Ministers might wonder what all the fuss is about.
It was she who was responsible for the closure of churches during the pandemic, betrayal of pastoral responsibility which damaged the Church and endless parish churches. With limited theological education, she must depend on theologically aware advisers and at 63, must be seen as a brave if caretaker appointment. She will need all our prayers.
I too have mixed feelings about this appt. but I am astonished that it has been possible to make the public announcement only a week after the last meeting of the CNC. It usually seems to take between one and two months during the appt. of a bishop, so how has it been possible to rush this through so quickly? And what was the point, given that it will be almost 6 months before the installation on Lady day next year? If speed is of the essence, surely something could have been done to expedite this long-drawn-out process? The gap… Read more »
Usually the CNC meeting is followed by medical and safeguarding checks on the person being nominated. That takes several weeks. In this case those checks were all completed before the final CNC meeting last week. Presumably all the shortlisted candidates were checked out.
Thanks, Simon, for your rapid explanation. But what a pain for the unsuccessful shortlisted candidates to have to go through all that for nothing! And presumably the safeguarding check did not identify Dame Sarah’s involvement in the Alan Griffin case as an obstacle. Many would demur.
Given the paperwork and all sorts of other stuff that candidates for diocesan bishoprics have to produce I suspect an extra DBS check is neither here nor there, and a medical perhaps not very much more.
The DBS check is presumably no different from the enhanced check any of us might need. All candidates shortlisted for bishoprics are also pre-checked for safeguarding awareness, history, skeletons etc.
Congrats and prayers for Bishop Sarah. Judging by all the misogynistic and hateful comments on the Anglican Communion Facebook page, she’s going to need all the help she can get.
I thought she would be William Nye’s choice as Archbishop an apparently radical.choice but an ardent Royalist and a political safe pair of hands.
So the ex head of MI5 has done his job. A solid establishment figure is appointed
This is a historic moment and I rejoice in it. I think this is such a good appointment -someone already leading at this level can offer some important continuity and steady experience for what is ahead. As a priest in the CofE I am honoured to be a priest in a church that has appointed its first woman archbishop. Meanwhile the joy being expressed on the inclusive networks in this corner of the Midlands is rejuvenating in itself. She has prayers and my thanks. I am in no doubt how tough the challenges are that she faces.
It seems to me that the CofE is lucky that she is willing to serve. Leadership positions like these are hard and isolated, and the holders easily become the focus of factions’ disappointments, whether or not they personally had anything to do with them. The church would be wise to listen to her and let her be her sort of leader, without demanding that she is ‘advised’ by a bunch of men.