Sarah Mullally

Dame Sarah Elisabeth Mullally (Bowser; born 26 March 1962) is a British Anglican bishop, Lord Spiritual and former nurse.

Mullally was born Sarah Elisabeth Bowser on 26 March 1962, the younger of two daughters.

She was educated at Winston Churchill Comprehensive School, Woking, Surrey, and at Woking Sixth Form College.

While studying for A levels she decided to become a nurse rather than a doctor because she wanted to apply a holistic approach to patient care.

Her choice of career was also motivated by her Christian faith, which she has held since the age of 16.

In 1980, she began a nursing degree at South Bank Polytechnic, with clinical placements at St Thomas' Hospital, and was awarded joint Registered General Nurse (RGN) status and a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in 1984.

In 1992, she completed a Master of Science (MSc) degree in inter-professional health and welfare studies at London South Bank University.

Mullally held clinical nursing posts at St Thomas' Hospital and The Royal Marsden Hospital (where she completed their specialist nursing course).

She held a number of nursing leadership roles, firstly at the former Westminster Hospital (where she was a ward sister and head of practice development) and then as director of nursing at the Chelsea and Westminster later becoming deputy and acting chief executive officer.

From 1998 to 2001, Mullally undertook training for ordained ministry at the South East Institute of Theological Education (now St Augustine's College of Theology).

From 1999 to 2004, she was Chief Nursing Officer for England and the National Health Service's director of patient experience for England; from 2015 to 2018, she was Bishop of Crediton, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Exeter.

In 1999 she was appointed as Chief Nursing Officer and director of patient experience for England.

She was the youngest person to hold these positions.

She has been a non-executive director of the English Board of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting.

She also studied theology at the University of Kent during this period, completing a Diploma in Theology (DipTh) in 2001.

From 2001 to 2004, she served her curacy as a non-stipendiary minister (i.e. a part-time minister) at the Parish of Battersea Fields in the Diocese of Southwark.

She was ordained in the Church of England: made a deacon at Michaelmas 2001 (30 September) at Southwark Cathedral and ordained a priest the following Michaelmas (5 October 2002) at Holy Trinity, Clapham — both times by Tom Butler, Bishop of Southwark.

In 2004, Mullally left her position as Chief Nursing Officer to pursue full-time ministry.

She then served as an assistant curate at St Saviour's Church, Battersea Fields from 2004 to 2006.

Mullally was an independent governor for London South Bank University between 2005 and 2015, where she became vice-chair of the board of governors and chair of the policy and resources committee.

She was a non-executive director of the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust from 2005 to 2012, and held a non-executive role at Salisbury NHS Foundation between 2012 and 2016.

She completed a Master of Arts (MA) degree in pastoral theology at Heythrop College, University of London in 2006.

In 2006, she became the team rector of Sutton team ministry at St Nicholas Church, Sutton, London.

In addition to her parish work, she taught ethics in the Diocese of Southwark, was involved in an Anglican clergy leadership programme and sat on the Church of England's dioceses commission.

From 2012 to 2015, she was the canon treasurer at Salisbury Cathedral in the Diocese of Salisbury.

In June 2015, it was announced that Mullally would be the next bishop of Crediton, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Exeter.

On 22 July 2015, she was consecrated a bishop by Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, at Canterbury Cathedral.

She and Rachel Treweek were the first women to be ordained as bishops in Canterbury Cathedral.

In September 2015, she became the first woman in the Church of England to lead an ordination service, ordaining two deacons, Leisa McGovern and Sheila Walker, as priests in St Mary's Church, Ottery St Mary, Devon.

Mullally became a lay member of the Council of King's College London in 2016.

On 18 December 2017, it was announced that she would be the next Bishop of London, succeeding Richard Chartres who retired in February 2017.

As Bishop of London, she is the third most senior bishop in the Church of England, after the archbishops of Canterbury and York.

Between her confirmation and her installation, she was licensed as an honorary assistant bishop in the Diocese of Exeter so that she was able to carry out engagements related to her former see.

She has been Bishop of London since 2018, and is the first woman to hold the position.

She was duly elected to the see by the college of canons of St Paul's Cathedral on 25 January 2018, becoming bishop-elect.

She was translated and took full legal possession of the see at the confirmation of her election — on 8 March at St Mary-le-Bow — and assumed full duties upon her installation at St Paul's on 12 May.

Mullally was sworn as a member of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom on 14 March 2018.

She sits as a Lord Spiritual in the House of Lords.

Her introduction in the House of Lords was held on 24 May 2018.

On 15 July 2020, she acted as principal consecrator at the consecration of Hugh Nelson and Ruth Bushyager to the episcopate: this is a break in tradition with the Archbishop of Canterbury usually taking this role, and was the first time a female bishop had led a consecration service in the Church of England.