Bishop of Norwich

The Rt Revd Graham Usher

Bishop Graham became the 72nd Bishop of Norwich on 17 June 2019 and was formally welcomed at his enthronement service in Norwich Cathedral on 9 November 2019.

Prior to his appointment as Bishop of Norwich, he was Bishop of Dudley from 2014 – 2019.

Bishop Graham began life as an ecologist and was appointed lead bishop on the environment by the Archbishop of Canterbury in June 2021. He is a member of the International Commission for Anglican Orthodox Theological Dialogue and the Anglican Consultative Council. He is a keen beekeeper and regularly tweets @bishopnorwich. He has written about spirituality and landscape in Places of Enchantment, Meeting God in Landscapes, and his second book, The Way Under Our Feet: A Spirituality of Walking, was published in April 2020.

He is the patron or president of over 25 charities, mostly Norfolk-based.

You can watch his initial remarks following his announcement as Bishop of Norwich on YouTube, where he talks about the awe-inspiring Christian faith, the Christ-like humility we seek as Christians, and the calling of the Church to offer all that it can in love.

Bishop Graham is married to Rachel, a GP, and they have two adult children. He studied ecological science at the University of Edinburgh and theology at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, before training for ministry at Westcott House, Cambridge. Following his ordination as a deacon in 1996, he began his ministry in Middlesbrough in the Diocese of York, first as curate at St Mary the Virgin, Nunthorpe, and then as Vicar of Holy Trinity, North Ormesby, a parish with severe levels of social need and child poverty. In 2004 he became Rector of Hexham in the Diocese of Newcastle and had the additional responsibility of being Area Dean of Hexham between 2006 and 2011. In 2007 he was also appointed Honorary Canon of St Cyprian’s Cathedral in Kumasi, Ghana, the place of his early childhood. He has maintained an interest in biodiversity and landscapes, chairing the Forestry Commission’s Forestry and Woodlands Committee in the Northeast and being a Secretary of State appointee to the Northumberland National Park Authority when Rector of Hexham. Until 2020 he was a board member of the Human Tissue Authority.

Contact the Bishop’s Office

Tel: 01603 629001

Email: ovfubc@qvbprfrbsabejvpu.bet

Post: Bishop’s House, Norwich, NR3 1SB

PA: Sophie Bell Tel: 01603 629001 fbcuvr.oryy@qvbprfrbsabejvpu.bet

Bishop’s Chaplain: Revd Canon Sally Theakston Tel: 01603 614172  ovfubcf.puncynva@qvbprfrbsabejvpu.bet

Researcher to Lead Bishop on the Environment: Rachel Sowerby  Tel: 01603 629001 enpury.fbjreol@qvbprfrbsabejvpu.bet

Assistant Secretary: Brenna Wells Tel: 01603 629001 oeraan.jryyf@qvbprfrbsabejvpu.bet

Finance and Facilities Assistant: Louise Cumberland Tel: 01603 629001 ybhvfr.phzoreynaq@qvbprfrbsabejvpu.bet

Head Gardener: Sam Garland  fnz.tneynaq@qvbprfrbsabejvpu.bet