A new Archbishop of Wales has been announced following a turbulent time in the church.
Cherry Vann has been revealed as the 15th person to hold the role – and the first woman.
Ms Vann, originally from Leicester, has served as the Bishop of Monmouth for the past five years.
She replaces Andrew John, who retired last month after three-and-a-half years in the role, following a chaotic time in the Church in Wales.
Mr John’s departure followed the publication of a safeguarding review at Bangor Cathedral, which identified “a culture in which sexual boundaries seemed blurred” and “promiscuity was acceptable”.
There has been no suggestion that Mr John behaved inappropriately.
Mr John commissioned two reports into the North Wales cathedral in October last year.
A summary of a report shared on the Church in Wales’ website said there were also reports of “inappropriate language, rude jokes and innuendos in the choir that left some feeling unsafe and marginalised”.
Inappropriate language was also used in front of younger members of the choir and at times caused “humiliation to some”, the report’s authors were told.
Other issues raised included the presence of hurtful gossip, a poor safeguarding approach 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.
She then 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.”
