The Rt Revd Dr Helen-Ann Hartley has formally left her role as Bishop of Ripon after five years to become Bishop of Newcastle.

At a special evensong service at Ripon Cathedral, Bishop Helen-Ann removed her diocesan cope, stole and mitre and placed them on the altar in a symbolic act of standing down.

Paying tribute to to the people of the Ripon episcopal area, she said:

“I have often felt most affirmed in my role as Bishop of Ripon by people and groups who are not part of the formal structures of the church, and for whose support and encouragement I will be forever grateful: by our civic and military partners, those who work in the rural and farming economies and the running community.”

With Bishop of Leeds Nick Baines

She praised Ripon Runners, of which she was a member, for giving her mental and physical challenges, such as once having to define “evil” while running up a hill to Ripon’s Morrisons supermarket.

Bishop of Leeds Nick Baines said Bishop Helen-Ann had been a blessing to the diocese in the five years since she arrived from New Zealand, accompanied at that service by a group of Maori elders.

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Bishop Nick presenting her with a framed aerial view of Fountains Abbey, near Ripon, as a parting gift. He said

“Let us continue to pray for Bishop Helen-Ann and her husband Myles and pray that they will thrive and build new friendships with colleagues in Newcastle.”

The bishop’s final sermon in Ripon.

The appointment of a bishop is a lengthy and opaque process that requires the consent of Downing Street.

The Stray Ferret asked the Anglican Diocese of Leeds when a new Bishop of Ripon was likely to be appointed.

A spokesman said:

“A process to find her successor is underway and will be concluded as swiftly as possible.”

Residents from across the Harrogate district have gathered to pay their respects to the late Queen today, and to welcome the new King.

Proclamations of the accession of King Charles III were made at the war memorial in Harrogate and at Ripon Town Hall at 4pm.

At the former, the Mayor of the Borough of Harrogate, Cllr Victoria Oldham, read the words of the proclamation to the gathered crowd. She said:

“In an age where modern methods of communication convey news around the globe in an instant, the proclamation is no longer how people learn for the first time that they have a new monarch.

“Today, however, is one of the first occasions when communities have an opportunity to come together and reflect on the moment in our nation’s history when the reign of our longest-serving monarch came to an end and our new sovereign succeeded.”

The ceremony included “inverting the mace” as a symbol that the crown had passed to a new sovereign.

Several hundred people stood in silence until she concluded by declaring “God save the King!”, echoed by the audience.

It was followed by three cheers for the new King.

Among the dignitaries taking part in the ceremony were the council chief executive Wallace Sampson and its leader, Cllr Richard Cooper. Those gathered included Andrew Jones, MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, as well as many local councillors.

All were dressed in black and wearing black armbands.

Deputy Lord Lieutenant Richard Compton, centre, with other dignitaries outside Ripon Town Hall

The Bishop of Ripon, the Rt Rev Dr Helen-Ann Hartley, was present for the city’s proclamation of the new King, along with its Mayor and Mayoress, Cllr Sid Hawke and his wife Linda.

The proclamation was read out by Richard Compton, Deputy Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire, at Ripon Town Hall.

The crowd then sang the national anthem before giving three cheers for King Charles III.

Read more:

• Bells ring out across the district once more as Charles III proclaimed King
• King Charles III’s long links to the Harrogate district

Meanwhile, this morning, hundreds of people gathered at Ripon Cathedralfor a special Sung Eucharist Service, at which prayers were said to mark the death of Queen Elizabeth II and the accession of His Majesty King Charles III.

What was originally scheduled to be a civic service for the Mayor of Harrogate changed its focus following the Queen’s death on Thursday.

Cllr Oldham was in attendance along with the Mayor and Mayoress of Ripon, Councillor Sid Hawke and his wife Linda, as well as Ripon MP Julian Smith and the chair of North Yorkshire County Council, Cllr Margaret Atkinson.

The service was led by the Dean of Ripon, the Very Rev John Dobson. As chaplain to the Mayor of Harrogate, he was also in Harrogate this afternoon for the Proclamation of King Charles III.