CANON Simon Jones, Chaplain and Fellow of Merton College, Oxford, is to be the Interim Dean of Lincoln, it was announced last week. Canon Jones will take up the post in March on the retirement of the Very Revd Christine Wilson, announced at the end of last year (News, 2 December 2022).

Dean Wilson took a voluntary leave of absence in 2019 (News, 26 April 2019) for the duration of a long safeguarding investigation. She returned to work almost a year later (News, 20 March 2020), having been given a “conditional deferment”. A Bishop’s Visitation to examine the governance of the cathedral was announced alongside the news of her return.

Canon Jones trained for ordination at Westcott House, Cambridge, and has a doctorate from Cambridge. His post at Merton — which he has held for more than 20 years — entails responsibility for welfare provision and student financial support, as well as for the chapel and choral foundation. He teaches liturgy, and is a member of the university’s Faculty of Theology and Religion.

He chairs the steering committee of the International Anglican Liturgical Consultation, and the board of the Church Times’s parent company, Hymns Ancient & Modern. He has been involved in the work of the Liturgical Commission for more than 20 years. He is an Hon. Canon of Christ Church, Oxford, and Hon. Canon Theologian of Chichester Cathedral.

The post of Interim Dean — appointed by the Bishop with the agreement of the Chapter — is a provision of the Cathedrals Measure 2021. Canon Jones’s appointment is a nine-month secondment from his college, and ends on Christmas Day.

Canon Jones said this week that the opportunity to serve the cathedral and diocese of Lincoln at a time of transition was “a great privilege”, he said.

“I’ve been touched by the messages of support received since the announcement of my appointment, and very much look forward to becoming part of the cathedral community, and to working with, and learning from, new colleagues.”