Sarah Mullally

Dame Sarah Elisabeth Mullally, (née Bowser; born 26 March 1962) is a British Anglican bishop, Lord Spiritual and former nurse. She has been Bishop of London since 8 March 2018. She is the first woman to hold this position. From 1999 to 2004, she was England's Chief Nursing Officer and the National Health Service's director of patient experience for England; from July 2015 until 2018, she was Bishop of Crediton, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Exeter. Early life and education Mullally was born Sarah Elisabeth Bowser on 26 March 1962, the younger of two daughters. She was educated at Winston Churchill Comprehensive School, Woking, Surrey, and at Woking Sixth Form College. While studying for A levels she decided to become a nurse rather than a doctor because she wanted to apply a holistic approach to patient care. Her choice of career was also motivated by her Christian faith, which she has held since the age of 16. In 1980, she began a nursing degree at South Bank Polytechnic, with clinical placements at St Thomas' Hospital, and was awarded joint Registered General Nurse (RGN) status and a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in 1984. In 1992, she completed a Master of Science (MSc) degree in inter-professional health and welfare studies at London South Bank University.