Church Church of England Birth name Elizabeth Hall Denomination Anglicanism Diocese Diocese of Chelmsford | In office 2016 to present Nationality British Predecessor David Lowman | |
Ordination 2001 (deacon)
2002 (priest) Alma maters Plymouth University, UCL Institute of Education, The Queen's Foundation, University of Birmingham | ||
Elizabeth Snowden (née Hall; born 1958) is a British Anglican priest and former school teacher. Since March 2016, she has been Archdeacon of Chelmsford in the Diocese of Chelmsford.
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Early life and education
Snowden was born Elizabeth Hall in 1958. She studied geography at Plymouth Polytechnic, graduating with a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in 1979. She then trained as a teacher at the London Institute of Education and completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) in 1980. She then taught geography and economics at a secondary school.
In 1998, Snowden entered Queen's College, Birmingham, an ecumenical theological college in Birmingham, to train for ordination. During this time she also studied theology at the University of Birmingham, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 2001.
Ordained ministry
Snowden was ordained in the Church of England as a deacon in 2001 and as a priest in 2002. From 2001 to 2004, she served her curacy at Christ Church, Burntwood in the Diocese of Lichfield. In May 2004, she was appointed Resident Minister of Clayhanger Holy Trinity, a church plant that worships in a building of Holy Trinity School in Clayhanger, West Midlands, and also became Youth Work Coordinator for the Parish of St James, Brownhills.
In 2010, Snowden was appointed priest-in-charge of the Benefice of Bestwood Emmanuel with St Mark in the Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham. The following year, in 2011, she was made Vicar of the benefice. From 2013, she was also Area Dean of Nottingham North. During this time she worked closely four other parishes the Bestwood area including two Methodist-Anglican local ecumenical partnerships.
In December 2015, Snowden was announced as the next Archdeacon of Chelmsford in the Diocese of Chelmsford. On 13 March 2016, she was collated and installed as Archdeacon during a service at Chelmsford Cathedral. The Archdeaconry of Chelmsford covers the Deaneries of Brentwood, Chelmsford North, Chelmsford South, and Maldon and Dengie.
Personal life
Snowden is married to Geoff and she has four children.