Dame Sarah Mullally becomes first woman to lead Church of England

The first woman appointed to the Church of England’s top post was officially confirmed today, despite a heckler interrupting the ceremony.

Dame Sarah Mullally became the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury, taking up the position at St Paul’s Cathedral.

She replaced Justin Welby, after he resigned more than a year ago over safeguarding failures in the handling of prolific abuser and Christian camp leader John Smyth.

In a statement before the ceremony, she said: ‘These are times of division and uncertainty for our fractured world.

‘I want us to be a Church that listens to the voices of those who have been ignored or overlooked, among them victims and survivors of church abuse who have often been let down.’

It comes less than a month after a complaint against Dame Sarah herself was dismissed.

Survivor N, an alleged victim of sexual abuse at the hands of a London vicar, spoke out against her in 2020.

He accused Dame Sarah, 63, of mishandling his complaint while she served as the Bishop of London.

Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, who served as the interim leader of the Church, was asked to review the case and decided to take no further action against Dame Sarah. But it is understood survivor N might appeal this decision.

She was also embroiled in a separate safeguarding scandal after a priest took his own life in November 2020, following an inquiry into false child abuse allegations.

Father Alan Griffin, 78, had spent a year under investigation without ever having the allegations set out to him.

A coroner later ruled: 'He killed himself because he could not cope with an investigation into his conduct, the detail of and the source for which he had never been told.'

Inside St Paul’s today, shouting could be heard after the congregation was asked whether there were any objections to Dame Sarah's confirmation.

However, it was declared that the objection had been made too late, after public notice had been ‘duly given’, so the service continued.

Those gathered included bishops, clergy and local schoolchildren. Another ceremony will take place at Canterbury Cathedral in March to install - or enthrone - Dame Sarah.

Before then, she will meet with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and the leaders of other Christian denominations and faiths. It is also traditional to pay homage to the monarch, who is technically the head of the Church, so she is expected to meet with the King.

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The Archbishop of Canterbury is the most senior bishop in England, leading more than a million regular worshippers.

They also serve as a spiritual figure for Anglicans worldwide, of whom there are thought to be 85million living across more than 165 countries.

Dame Sarah, a former NHS chief nurse and mother of two, became a priest in 2006 and was appointed as the first female Bishop of London in 2018 - the third most senior member of the clergy.

She was named Mr Welby’s successor in October, becoming the first woman to take on the role in the Church’s near-500-year history.

She did not preach at her confirmation service, and is not expected to do so before March. However, she will appear at General Synod - the Church's parliament - in February, where she will give the presidential address.

Dame Sarah has been outspoken on several controversial topics since becoming a bishop.

She brought forward a motion to offer blessings to same sex-couples in civil partnerships and marriages, which the Church voted in favour of in 2023.

She has also criticised the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, which proposes to legalise assisted dying under certain circumstances.

In the wake of the abuse scandals, Dame Sarah has been described by lead bishop for safeguarding Joanne Grenfell as having ‘full commitment to improving the culture’ across the Church.

Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell paid tribute to Dame Sarah as having a ‘clarity of thinking, wisdom, grace and holiness’, which he said ‘is what the Church needs right now’.