The Archbishops’ Secretary for Appointments has written to members of General Synod to confirm expected timings for the process of nominating the next Archbishop of Canterbury. Details are in a press release, which is copied below the fold.
The full membership of the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) is expected to be known by mid-March. The Commission will meet three times – in May, July and September. Standard procedure is that shortlisted candidates are interviewed at the final meeting, and a decision made.
Nominating the next Archbishop of Canterbury
20/01/2025
Stephen Knott, The Archbishops’ Secretary for Appointments has written to members of General Synod to confirm expected timings for the process of nominating the next Archbishop of Canterbury.
Dear members of the General Synod,
As you will expect, the process for the appointment of the next Archbishop of Canterbury is underway and I wanted to write to share the outline framework of the emerging plans surrounding this. It is a significant responsibility, and all those involved are committed to ensuring this important process is carried out with the utmost integrity and care.
By way of an update, the Canterbury Diocese ‘Vacancy in See’ process commenced in December and, late last year, it was announced from Downing Street that the Prime Minister had appointed Lord (Jonathan) Evans of Weardale to chair the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC). My colleagues and I are supporting Lord Evans as he takes on this important responsibility and are working in partnership with him on the detailed planning.
In February and March, Jonathan Hellewell (the Prime Minister’s Appointments Secretary) and I will undertake an extensive consultation exercise and, as part of this consultation, it will be possible for you to contribute and share your views. The themes that emerge through this consultation will sit alongside the ‘Statement of Needs’ produced by the Diocese of Canterbury, as well as other information provided by the National Church and Anglican Communion, in informing the CNC of the needs of the mission of the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion.
It is expected that the full membership of the Commission will be known by mid-March, by which time the names of the three individuals elected from the Diocese of Canterbury’s Vacancy in See Committee, the outcome of the election of the episcopal member(s), the Central Members and the Anglican Communion representatives will be announced. The election process for the episcopal membership will be overseen by the Central Secretariat and further information on this will be circulated in the next weeks.
Once the Diocese of Canterbury’s Vacancy in See process has concluded, the extensive consultation exercise has been completed, and the full membership of the CNC is known, the Commission will convene for its first meeting in May, followed by two further meetings – one in July and one in September. Through these meetings, the Commission will agree the ‘Role Profile’ and ‘Person Specification’ for the next Archbishop, as well as longlist, shortlist and interview potential candidates.
While the discernment of the Crown Nominations Commission is necessarily confidential, we are committed to sharing relevant updates and information whenever available. To provide clarity on the timeline and sequence of events concerning the appointment and CNC process, there is a dedicated page on the Church of England website for your reference.
Finally, we want to make sure that prayer is central to the process and would ask that you continue to hold it – and all those involved – in your prayers:
Heavenly Father,
shepherd of your Church,
send us a faithful pastor
to lead with wisdom, courage, and love,
proclaiming your Gospel,
celebrating the sacraments,
and guiding your people in unity and truth.
Strengthen your Church, we pray,
and direct us in your ways;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Should any of you have questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or my team by emailing abc106@churchofengland.org.
I am writing in similar terms to the members of the College of Bishops.
This is the “speedy version”… ? Some of the delay I get .. but most of it feels un-needed. This is surely the most important and urgent bishop-appointment to make in 2025.. between the end of March and May – that feels too long and then again between May and July – all that should happen at that stage is the various potential candidates say “yes consider me” or “no I don’t feel called” and write a personal statement. Surely that could be reduced to 1 month as well. then July to September – I can nearly forgive this delay… Read more »
Don’t forget that Easter is 20 April. With Holy Week that will take a couple of weeks out of everyone’s calendar. And the CNC dates for St Eds & Ips are either side of Easter (4 March and 28/29 April); and for Worcester are 9 May and 12/13 June. Some of the central members, as well as the secretariat, will be at all of these and they will need time to read and consider the papers. I can assure you that is a fairly substantial task in itself. Every member of the CNC can mandate the inclusion of one name,… Read more »
what do “candidates” have to provide and what other documents do CNC members need to read. is it like a US supreme court judge process (basing my knowledge on the West wing) where everything they have written or said is scrutinised
I agree but not.
If it was any other bishop then “that’s our current process.. ok but grumble”
But they should really be re ordering diaries to prioritise getting a good archbishop asap. After all many want to replace the other archbishop as well.
Which does mean moving back other bishops. But I do think the crisis at the church is better solved with a new archbishop sooner rather than later…
You assume, or opine, that the crisis in the church is soluble. And that having an Archbishop is more likely to effect solution than not having one.
I’m not clear that either belief is justified.
It is a very good idea to publish the letter to the members of synod. It is a simple way of being transparent. However, I do wonder about the wisdom of putting the email link on the public document. I suspect that the ‘any of you’ who are invited to reach out are rightly synod members, but this can be interpreted as anyone any where. I would have redacted the email link.