A decorum of deans descends on Dunedin

Anglican deans (from left) the Very Revs Digby Wilkinson (Wellington), Michael Godfrey (Napier), Peter Rickman (Hamilton), Dr Trevor James (Dunedin), the Ven Nick Mountfort (Christchurch) and the Very Revs Jo Kelly-Moore (Auckland) and Nick Kirk (Nelson) congregate in St Paul's Cathedral, Dunedin, yesterday.

One of the church's more unusual roles, steering the ''mothership'' of a city's diocese, is one of the issues discussed at the conference of New Zealand's cathedral deans this week.

Auckland dean Mrs Kelly-Moore said those issues included political and economic issues, such as the disparity between rich and poor.

Dr James said a dean's role included caring for a cathedral that was ''a hugely creative space'', a site for everything from spiritual activities to political meetings.