10/11/2023
The Church of England is pleased to announce the appointment of Hannah Howard as Director of Communications.
Hannah joins the Church of England from the Royal Household where she is Communications Secretary to The King and previously Communications Secretary to Queen Elizabeth II. During her time at Buckingham Palace Hannah was responsible for the communications strategy and media operation for the Platinum Jubilee, the accession of The King and funeral of Her late Majesty, and the Coronation. Hannah was appointed a Lieutenant of the Victorian Order by Queen Elizabeth II in 2018.
Hannah previously held a number of roles at the BBC, including in the Corporate Press Office and News and Current Affairs Publicity.
In her new role, Hannah will be responsible for the team developing and implementing communication strategies in support of the mission of the Church of England and its vision and strategy for the 2020s, as well as supporting the Church to contribute to national conversations on issues of social significance.
Based at Church House, Westminster, the Communications department serves the Archbishops' Council, the Church Commissioners, and the Church of England Pensions Board as well as working closely with Lambeth and Bishopthorpe Palaces, bishops' offices, dioceses, and cathedrals.
William Nye, Secretary General to the General Synod, said: “I am delighted that we are appointing Hannah Howard to be the national director of communications for the Church of England. Hannah brings to the Church her valuable experience in leading communications for another unique and long-established national institution. There she has overseen both traditional forms of communications, and creative uses of new media. She is joining a strong team at Church House, and I am very grateful to John Bingham for his excellent work leading the team as Acting Director since the spring.”
The Bishop of Manchester, David Walker, said: “Hannah’s wealth of experience, both of delivering positive communications strategies for major events, and in leading a team handling complex and sometimes conflicted issues, will strengthen our skills and enhance our capacity to deliver the range of high-quality multimedia communications needed for the Church in this generation.”
Hannah will start her new role in January.