CHURCHGOERS were delighted when the Bishop of Gloucester told them their search for a new rector was finally over after a 20-month wait.

And it will be a big change for Canon Clare Edwards when she swaps the magnificence and hustle and bustle of Canterbury Cathedral for the rural BrookDean benefice of Drybrook, Ruardean and Lydbrook this autumn.

The 63-year-old was appointed the world famous cathedral’s first woman canon in 2004 and helped appoint the current Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, as part of a 16-strong panel.

As canon pastor responsible for the pastoral care of the regular Canterbury congregation, she also oversees the million-plus visitors every year to the cathedral, and has a staff of 300 and some 600 volunteers.

She is a friend of the Bishop of Gloucester, Rt Rev Rachel Treweek, who told BrookDean worshippers at a communion service at Holy Trinity, Drybrook, on Sunday, July 22, that Canon Edwards would be joining them in four months’ time.

The benefice has been without a rector since Rev Nick Bromfield left in October 2016 to take a team leader role at Prestbury in Cheltenham, while curate Philip Averay moved to become vicar of Chepstow last year.

Drybrook church warden Jane White, who shares the role with James Gilding, said: “We all feel hugely excited and privileged to receive the news of our new rector and we hope this will strengthen our bond with all three churches, thus enabling us to reach out to the people of the Forest. 

“We look forward to welcoming everyone in the community through our doors in the coming months and share in our togetherness and love for each other. A new chapter has now begun. Hallelujah.”

She said members of the church, who enjoyed a bring and share lunch after the service, had fought hard to keep things going over the last two years, and they had been very fortunate to have help from several retired clergy – Bishop Christopher Hill of Guildford, Rev Roger Minson, Rev Marilyn Adsetts, Rev Fred Long, Rev Rosie Finch and Reader Tony Hughes. 

A keen walker with a passion for pilgrim routes, Canon Edwards is looking forward to getting out and about on the Forest’s trails.

“I oversee the visits department at Canterbury, which welcomes over a million people a year and enjoy the frequent meetings I have with pilgrims arriving and leaving,” she said.

“In 2008, I walked 500 miles of the camino from St-Jean-Pied-de-Port to Santiago de Compostella in Spain, so I will be looking to see if there are any good pilgrim routes we might promote around the benefice in the Forest.”

Canon Edwards has been in full time church ministry since 1986, when she was made a deaconess, having previously worked as a nurse, specialising in paediatrics at Great Ormond Street.

“I spent 18 years in parish ministry in the diocese of Southwark in south London, until an unexpected phone call took me to work as canon pastor at Canterbury Cathedral, which is where I’ve been for the last 14 years,” she added.

“In the wider community, I’ve been involved with night shelters for the homeless, food banks and the support of refugees in Calais. I’m looking forward to getting to know people across the parishes, in the schools and other local organisations. There will be lots for me to learn as I move and get settled in.

“I long for our churches to be communities of love and hospitality, reaching out to others and sharing Jesus’ gift of life in all its fullness, celebrating the good times in life and walking beside one another when life is tough.”

Canon Edwards helped Bishop Rachel on the day she was licensed as Bishop of Gloucester in Canterbury Cathedral, and is due to be licensed in the benefice on November 19.