Bishop of Coventry

The Bishop of Coventry is the Right Reverend Sophie Jelley.

Bishop Sophie is the tenth Bishop of Coventry.

About Bishop Sophie

Bishop Sophie grew up in Brighton before moving north to study Theology and Religious studies at the University of Leeds. Following discerning a call to ordination, Sophie trained at Wycliffe Hall theological college where she gained an MPhil in theology (Christian Doctrine) from Oxford University and was ordained in 1997 in Bradford Cathedral.

In 2000, Sophie took up the role of Mission Partner with the Church Mission Society in Uganda before returning to the UK in 2003 to take up the role of Resident Minister of St John the Evangelist in Churt in the Diocese of Guildford. In 2010 she was appointed Vicar of St Andrew’s Burgess Hill in the Diocese of Chichester and in 2015 she was appointed as Canon Missioner and Diocesan Director of Mission, Discipleship and Ministry in the Diocese of Durham.

In December 2019, it was announced that she would be the next Bishop of Doncaster and she was consecrated a bishop on the 21st of September 2020 at York Minster, following a delay due to the Covid 19 lockdowns. As Bishop of Doncaster, Sophie is the Sponsoring Bishop for all vocations and chairs the Board of Education. Also, she is the national episcopal lead for Lay Ministries across the Church of England.

Sophie is married to Chris, and they have three grown up children. Sophie plays the violin and viola, is a soprano singer and has been a keen runner for many years.

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