‘Missed opportunity if first woman not appointed as archbishop of Canterbury’

Failing to appoint a woman as the new archbishop of Canterbury for the first time would be a missed opportunity, a member of the Church of England’s parliament has said.

It will be confirmed on Friday who the new most senior religious leader of the Church will be, after an almost year-long wait since their predecessor announced he would be resigning over a safeguarding scandal.

Various names have been reported as having been considered, among them some female candidates who would make history as the first woman in the role if chosen.

While no shortlist of candidates has been published, one of those thought to be a favourite for the role is a former refugee who fled Iran with her family as a teenager in the wake of the Iranian revolution in 1980.

The Bishop of Chelmsford, Guli Francis-Dehqani, has previously spoken of her own story and how she has “a sense of the real trauma that many asylum seekers have experienced”.

Others tipped for the role include the Bishop of Gloucester the Rt Rev Rachel Treweek, who made history in 2015 by becoming the first female diocesan bishop and the first female bishop in the House of Lords.

Bishop of London Dame Sarah Mullally has also been mentioned, while others thought to be in the running include the Bishop of Bath and Wells, Michael Beasley, a former epidemiologist who was a member of the Church’s Covid-19 task force during the pandemic.

Speaking ahead of the announcement, Professor Helen King, an elected lay member of the Church of England General Synod, otherwise known as the Church’s parliament, for Oxford Diocese, said she is hopeful for a female to be appointed.

She told the PA news agency: “It’s been 10 years since we’ve had women bishops, and that means we’ve got women who have the experience to be archbishop.

“So I think it would be a missed opportunity, but the Church of England is perfectly capable of missing opportunities.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised (if it’s not a woman) but I hope very much it is.”

Andrew Graystone, a long-time advocate for survivors of Church abuse and victims of safeguarding failings, said it would be a “historic moment for the church, and a huge opportunity” if a woman was appointed to the role.

He warned whoever is chosen has a challenging road ahead of them.

He told PA: “The new archbishop will be faced with declining church attendance, bloated management structures and clergy squabbling over what people do in the bedroom. But the biggest challenge for the new archbishop is to restore trust after a decade of abuse scandals.”

The Church of England has been without its lead bishop since January when Justin Welby formally left office over failures in handling an abuse scandal.

He announced his intention to resign three months earlier, in November 2024.

Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell took on most of the responsibilities in the interim, and was one of the voting members of the body charged with choosing Mr Welby’s successor.

The Crown Nominations Commission (CNC), chaired by Lord Evans of Weardale – who is a former director-general of MI5 security service, had to agree to the new appointment by a two-thirds majority vote.

Following agreement, in line with tradition, the process involves a name being given to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and then passed to the monarch.

While, technically, the King is head of the Church of England, the person holding the role of archbishop of Canterbury is the most senior bishop and is the spiritual leader of the Church and the worldwide Anglican Communion.