McFarlane was
ordained in the
Church of England as a
deacon in 1993 at
Lichfield Cathedral. From 1994 to 1996, she remained in the Stafford to serve her
curacy as part of the Stafford Team Ministry. Jan McFarlane was first elected to the
General Synod of the Church of England in 2005. She was a member of the General Synod that approved the
consecration of women to the episcopate.
Episcopal ministry On 26 February 2016, Jan McFarlane was announced as the next
Bishop of Repton,
suffragan bishop in the
Diocese of Derby. She was welcomed into the Diocese of Derby as Bishop of Repton on 7 September 2016, during a service at
Derby Cathedral. While at Repton, she also served as Acting diocesan
Bishop of Derby, 31 August 2018 to February 2019. It was announced in January 2020 that she would be moving to become a
Residentiary Canon ("Canon Custos") of
Lichfield Cathedral, and an
honorary assistant bishop of the
Diocese of Lichfield, the following April. She was duly licensed to those roles on 3 April 2020. In April 2023, she was licensed as interim dean of Lichfield Cathedral. On 5 June 2024, it was announced that she had been appointed
Dean of Lichfield on a permanent basis. She was instituted as dean during a service at Lichfield Cathedral on 21 September 2024. ==Personal life==