THE new Dean of St Edmundsbury Cathedral will be installed during a special service this weekend.

Rev Canon Dr Frances Ward will be taking over the role from the Very Rev Neil Collings who died in June.

She will be installed as the new Dean at a service in the cathedral this Saturday.

Formally a canon theologian at Bradford Cathedral, Dr Ward is only the fourth woman to been appointed Dean by the Church of England.

“It’s an immensely exciting time for the cathedral, and a tremendous privilege to serve the towns and villages of the diocese of Ipswich and St Edmundsbury in the years to come as Dean,” she said. “I think we are at the beginning of something new and exciting in God’s plans for us: with a new tower to celebrate, and a new organ to sound forth the glory of God, I look forward to a time of renaissance within the church and renewed confidence in its role in British society.”

In welcoming the new mother-of-four Dean, the Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, the Rt Rev Nigel Stock said: “I very much look forward to working with someone who has always helped the church to serve the local community.

“I know that Frances will carry on ensuring that the cathedral is a place which seeks to be of service to the whole of Suffolk.”