Suffolk’s new bishop pledged her unwavering service to the county when she met with King Charles III in Buckingham Palace.
The Rt Revd Dr Joanne Grenfell, Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, had an audience with the King as part of her appointment in the county.
Bishop Joanne, who was Bishop of Stepney in London, succeeds Bishop Martin Seeley. He served for almost 10 years before his retirement.
During her induction period she has met many community leaders, ministers in the diocese and diocesan staff and Bishop Joanne has recently moved into Ipswich. She believes that her role gives her a unique opportunity to promote a Church which will be all inclusive to Suffolk’s different communities.
Bishop Joanne brings a deep interest in creating healthy and inclusive cultures and she said: "When meeting the King I was reminded of the sense of faithful service that the role of a diocesan bishop involves, a role which the King deeply understands because of his own task of defending the faith and serving the whole of our country. I was touched to think that he would pray with me and offer encouragement to this new ministry as a bishop for Suffolk."
Officially known as paying homage to the King, the meeting was a defining moment within her career serving within the Church of England.
"I am from a very ordinary background. I was educated at a state school in Teesside and was the first in my family to go to university. I couldn’t have imagined, as I was growing up, that I would take on a job that involves serving God with the people of Suffolk on my heart, speaking on matters of faith and the common good in the House of Lords, and meeting the King as I prepare to do all that. I feel the responsibility of using these opportunities to advocate for young people and help open doors for them to serve their local communities and to make a contribution to national Church and political life too," said Bishop Joanne.
She added: "Paying homage to His Majesty the King reminded me of the sense of faithful service that the role of a diocesan bishop involves."
She now has temporal rights in which she can licence new clergy, and to act as patron in some parish vacancies.
It also means that Bishop Joanne can start planning in earnest her service of welcome which will take place in front of hundreds of well-wishers who will be invited on Saturday 24 January at St Edmundsbury Cathedral in Bury St Edmunds. There will be an international presence to include bishops from partner dioceses in Tanzania, East Africa.
Prior to her role as Bishop of Stepney she served as Archdeacon in the Diocese of Portsmouth, Residentiary Canon and Director of Ordinands in the Diocese of Sheffield, and as an inner-city parish priest in Sheffield and Liverpool. She trained for ordination at Westcott House in Cambridge.
She is the Lead Safeguarding Bishop for the Church of England – her term of office finishes in April. She hopes to take up this role on the House of Lords amongst other briefs and says she is committed to improving the safeguarding of colleagues and volunteers.
Married with three children, 53-year-old Bishop Joanne is the first woman to lead St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Diocese.