The Bishop of Southwark, The Rt Revd Christopher Chessun, is delighted to announce the appointment of the Revd Canon Kathryn Fleming as Canon Precentor of Southwark Cathedral. Kathryn is currently the Canon for Worship and Community at Coventry Cathedral.
Kathryn studied English at Trinity College, Cambridge and Durham University where she specialised in 17th Century Religious Poetry. Prior to ordination, she had a varied career including working as a bookseller, music teacher, bed and breakfast proprietor and charity administrator. Before taking up her post at Coventry, Kathryn served in the Gloucester Diocese. In her current role, Kathryn oversees all the worship offered at Coventry Cathedral and is passionate about building relationships with all those connected to the Cathedral.
Commenting on her appointment, Kathryn says: “My time at Coventry has reinforced my understanding of reconciliation as central to the Gospel. I look forward to exploring the interplay of this with the radical inclusion that is so integral to the life of Southwark Cathedral and I’m excited to be joining a team that models this so well to the wider Church”.
Bishop Christopher says: “I am delighted to have appointed The Revd Canon Kathryn Fleming to this key role. Kathryn will bring with her a passion for music and liturgy as well as extensive experience of cathedral life and ministry. I look forward to welcoming her to both our Cathedral and the Diocese.”
The Dean of Southwark, The Very Revd Andrew Nunn comments: “We are delighted that Kathryn has been appointed as Canon Precentor at Southwark Cathedral. She will come to us with valuable experience gained at Coventry in both the liturgical and pastoral aspects of cathedral life. Kathryn will join a fantastic team of musicians, vergers, liturgists and clergy and will enable the busy ministry at Southwark to continue to flourish and the worship of Almighty God be offered, with excellence and inclusion in mind, in person and online.”
The date of Kathryn’s installation and licensing by the Bishop of Southwark will be announced in due course.
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More about Kathryn
Since 2014 Kathryn has been a residentiary Canon at Coventry Cathedral, with a portfolio that has latterly combined both worship and community, and the role of Sub-Dean, as she has overseen the Cathedral’s liturgical life, and striven to build relationships with those from both near and far who love the place. Ordained in 2004, her early years of ministry were spent in the Diocese of Gloucester.
Words and music are Kathryn’s great loves. It was through her years of leading worship as a chorister in Cambridge and London that God first drew her towards ministry. A move to Southwark feels in some ways like a homecoming, as she was profoundly shaped as a young adult by her time in the choir of St John the Divine, Kennington, where she began to grasp the relationship between life and liturgy in new ways. Other influences have been the charismatic Catholic gathering On Fire Mission and the challenging blend of faith and arts to be found at Greenbelt Festival. She is an enthusiastic communicator and has been blogging intermittently since ordination at Good in Parts. She can be found on twitter as @CoventryCanon – and is considering a small competition to take care of the necessary rebranding.
Kathryn has three grown-up children, two grand-children and an extended family of dog and cats, who ensure that she maintains a healthy balance between the excitement of exploring new places and need to regroup by curling up with a good book.
