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A new Archbishop of Wales has been announced. It follows a turbulent time in the church after critical reports regarding bevahiour at Bangor Cathedral.
Cherry Vann, originally from Leicester, has been unveiled as the 15th person and first woman to hold the role, reports PA.
Ms Vann, who has served as the Bishop of Monmouth for the past five years, will replace Andrew John, who retired last month after three-and-a-half years in the role amidst a tumultuous time in the Church in Wales.
Mr John’s departure came on the heels of a safeguarding review at Bangor Cathedral, which identified “a culture in which sexual boundaries seemed blurred” and where “promiscuity was acceptable”. However, there has been no suggestion that Mr John behaved inappropriately.
In October last year, Mr John commissioned two reports into the North Wales cathedral. A summary of one report shared on the Church in Wales’ website highlighted reports of “inappropriate language, rude jokes and innuendos in the choir that left some feeling unsafe and marginalised”.
The report also noted that inappropriate language was used in front of younger members of the choir, causing “humiliation to some”.
Other issues raised included hurtful gossip, a poor approach to safeguarding, and weak financial controls.
Ms Vann was ordained as a deacon in 1989 and was among the first women to be ordained as a priest in the Church of England in 1994. Prior to her current role, she served as Archdeacon of Rochdale, in the Diocese of Manchester, for 11 years.
In a statement, she said: “The first thing I shall need to do is to ensure that the issues which have been raised in the last six months are properly addressed and that I work to bring healing and reconciliation, and to build a really good level of trust across the Church and the communities the Church serves.”
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