As Dean of Birmingham, Catherine will lead the team of clergy and lay staff at Birmingham Cathedral as well as playing a leading role in the life of the  city.

She is expected to move from Huddersfield to Birmingham in the summer with her husband Robin Goater and their son, Thomas.  A fashion and design graduate, Catherine (48) retains a strong interest in the arts and has a background in broadcasting and journalism.

Catherine was trained for the ordained ministry at Westcott House, Cambridge and served as a deacon for seven years before being one of the first women to be ordained as priest in the Church of England in 1994, at Ripon Cathedral.

Catherine served her curacy at St Mary, Middleton, in South Leeds and then took up an ecumenical appointment at BBC Radio Leeds as Religious Affair Editor for four years.  In 1994 she became Vicar of three villages outside Barnsley and the editor of the Wakefield Diocesan newspaper
She became  Vicar of Huddersfield in 2001. 

In addition to running a busy town centre civic Church she is a Canon of Wakefield Cathedral, serves on the College Council of the College of the Resurrection, Mirfield and was made Rural Dean of Huddersfield in 2009.  She has chaired the award winning ‘Interfaith Kirklees’ Schools project since its founding in 2004. 

‘It’s a great honour to be invited to take up this role,’ said Catherine Ogle. ‘I’m excited by the prospect of living and working in such a vibrant and diverse city and looking forward to building on the excellent work that is taking place in and around the Cathedral.’ 
 
The Bishop of Birmingham, the Rt Revd David Urquhart said: “It is a pleasure to be welcoming Catherine to the Diocese. She is a talented priest with a strong track record of Christian leadership and mission. I look forward to working closely with her for the good of the city and the surrounding region.”

Canon Catherine Ogle will be the most senior female clergyperson in the Diocese and as Dean will be part of the Bishops core leadership team.