Jean Burgess named as new Bishop of Grimsby

The Venerable Jean Burgess has been announced as the next Bishop of Grimsby, the first woman to be a bishop in the Diocese of Lincoln.

A former archdeacon in the Diocese of Manchester she is currently the Archdeacon of Bournemouth.

Archdeacon Burgess said: "There was a real sense in my heart of a calling to this role."

The new bishop was born in Derby and was a nurse prior to her ordination in 2004.

"My role at the moment is to a mixture of rural places, coastal, a mix of wealth and poverty and actually it isn't that dissimilar from Grimsby."

As the new bishop, she will tour parts of the diocese including parishes, schools and churches.

The Bishop of Lincoln, the Right Reverend Stephen Conway, said: "I am thrilled that the King has approved our appointment of Jean as an episcopal colleague to serve with Bishop Nicholas and myself.

"I offer my warmest congratulations. Jean brings a rich range of experience of leadership in mission and in her reflective practice."

Archdeacon Burgess became a Christian as a teenager through her local parish church and has been married to husband Graham for more than 40 years.

They have three children and six grandchildren.

The archdeacon will be consecrated into her new role in the new year.

Women were first ordained priests in the Church in 1994, while the first female bishop appointments followed 20 years later in 2014

In line with tradition, the process of choosing a new bishop involves a name being given to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and then passed to the monarch.

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