THE membership of the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) that may select the subsequent Archbishop of Canterbury is predicted to be known by mid-March, before its first meeting in May, the Archbishops’ Secretary for Appointments, Stephen Knott, has said.
In a letter to General Synod members, published on the C of E website on Monday, Mr Knott writes that, as already reported, the vacancy-in-see committee for Canterbury met for the primary time last month, and that Lord Evans of Weardale, a former director-general of MI5 and a cross-bencher within the House of Lords, is to chair the Canterbury CNC (News, 20 December 2024).
In February and March, Mr Knott and the Prime Minister’s Appointments Secretary, Jonathan Hellewell, “will undertake an in depth consultation exercise”, the letter says, to which Synod members might be invited to contribute.
“The themes that emerge through this consultation will sit alongside the ‘Statement of Needs’ produced by the Diocese of Canterbury, in addition to other information provided by the National Church and Anglican Communion, in informing the CNC of the needs of the mission of the Church of England and the broader Anglican Communion,” the letter says.
“It is predicted that the total membership of the Commission might be known by mid-March, by which period the names of the three individuals elected from the Diocese of Canterbury’s Vacancy in See Committee, the end result of the election of the episcopal member(s), the Central Members and the Anglican Communion representatives might be announced. The election process for the episcopal membership might be overseen by the Central Secretariat and further information on this might be circulated in the subsequent weeks.”
The Canterbury CNC is predicted to fulfill for the primary time in May, Mr Knott writes, followed by meetings in July and September. “Through these meetings, the Commission will agree the ‘Role Profile’ and ‘Person Specification’ for the subsequent Archbishop, in addition to longlist, shortlist and interview potential candidates.”
A page on the C of E website regarding the process says that, once the CNC’s meetings have concluded, it “nominates the name of the popular candidate to the Prime Minister, who submits the name to His Majesty The King for approval. Once approved, the appointment is announced by 10 Downing Street.”
