Following a period of discernment, The Bishop of Chester, Mark Tanner, is pleased to announce that the Reverend Jane Proudfoot has been appointed as the next Archdeacon of Macclesfield.
Bishop Mark’s announcement is available in full below:
I am very pleased to announce that the Reverend Jane Proudfoot has been appointed as the next Archdeacon of Macclesfield.
Jane is currently the Rector of Grappenhall, Priest in charge of Daresbury, and Rural Dean of Great Budworth in this Diocese. Since September, she has been serving as Assistant Archdeacon of Macclesfield.
Jane follows Bishop Ian Bishop, Bishop of Thetford who served as Archdeacon of Macclesfield from 2011 to 2023, and we continue to pray for him as we pray for her.
She will be licensed in a service in Chester Cathedral on the afternoon of 28th April with a welcome service in the Archdeaconry to follow.
I really look forward to working with Jane as we seek to reach over 800,000 people who live in the Macclesfield Archdeaconry. Jane’s experience as parish priest, rural dean, and more recently as interim Assistant
Archdeacon will be invaluable as she steps into this new role. Please join me in holding Jane and her family in prayer during this time of transition.
Bishop Mark
Jane is originally from East Lancashire. Before becoming a vicar, she was a teacher of Religious Studies at Sandbach and Knutsford high schools, and before then, the first Homelessness officer for Warrington Borough Council.
She is married to Danny and has two grown-up daughters, Rose and Aphra, and a Red Labrador that sometimes answers to the name of Nell.
A big lover of music, Jane enjoys a broad spectrum of genres, including classical, jazz, musical theatre, and folk. She’s also a regular at the annual Creamfields dance festival in Daresbury where she has been leading ‘We are the Church at Creamfields’ since 2017.
Jane became interested in applying for the role when a particular part of the job description spoke to her, "It talked about the archdeacon being the ‘Arch-Pastor’ of the archdeaconry, which I interpreted as being someone who encourages, enables and supports clergy and laity in the archdeaconry, in their mission to reach out to those people who haven't yet heard the Good News of Jesus Christ.
“This is an exciting time for Chester Diocese as new approaches to church growth begin to emerge from our Diocesan Vision. It’s great to be joining the senior team as we support clergy and parishes in implementing new and innovative strategies.”
Invitation
We would be delighted if you could join us in welcoming Jane to the role.
She will be licensed at a service at the Cathedral at the end of April and welcomed by the Archdeaconry at a service in May. Please do add the dates to your diaries, to attend, or pray for them.
Licensing Service – 3 pm on Sunday 28 April at Chester Cathedral, CH1 2DY
Welcome Service – 3 pm on Sunday 12 May at St Paul’s Macclesfield, SK11 7AJ - Book Here
