A service of celebration took place at Christ Church Cathedral on Sunday to mark a significant 30 year milestone.

The service on April 28 marked three decades since women were first ordained as Church of England priests in the Diocese of Oxford.

While women could be ordained as Deacons from 1987, it was not until later that they were able to become priests permitted to celebrate sacraments such as Holy Communion.

The first ordinations of women in the Diocese of Oxford took place on April 16 and 17, 1994, in Oxford, Abingdon, High Wycombe, Reading, Banbury and Buckingham.

Many of those 67 women reconvened to lead the procession of the clergy into the cathedral at the beginning of the service.

Prior to the service, a quarter peal was rung by 10 female bell ringers.

The sermon in the afternoon reflected on the role of women in the bible and early church such as Mary Magdalen and the Apostle Junia, and their subsequent neglect by medieval male writers and theologians.

It was delivered by the Venerable Christine Allsopp - former Archdeacon of Northampton and a member of the pioneering 1994 cohort.

The service also presented an opportunity to praise women more broadly in the Church of England.

It was led by the Diocese’s first female Bishop, The Rt Revd Olivia Graham, Bishop of Reading, while the first female Dean of Christ Church, The Very Revd Professor Sarah Foot, served as liturgical Deacon.

The liturgical elements of the service were conducted by female priests from around the Diocese and those currently in training.

The hymns sung during the service showcased texts authored by women, including a new composition created especially for the occasion by Revd Philippa White, Christ Church Cathedral’s Precentor.

The mass setting and anthem sung during the service and the solo organ pieces at the start and end were also composed by women.

Bishop Olivia said: "It was a wonderful occasion to bring women’s ministry to the fore and commemorate this milestone, especially as we were joined by so many of the women who were part of the 1994 cohort.

"It was a joyful day, just as it was 30 years ago, to stand side by side with these history makers and all those who fought for women’s ordination, and celebrate all that has been achieved."

Christ Church Cathedral is the College Chapel as well as the cathedral church for the Diocese of Oxford.

It recently has a new stained glass window constructed and installed for the first time in over a century.

It was designed by artist John Reyntiens and produced in London by Reyntiens Glass Studio.