Joanne Kearsley appointed senior coroner

Joanne Kearsley

Joanne Kearsley has been appointed senior coroner for the Manchester North district, which covers Rochdale, Bury and Oldham.

Ms Kearsley, who is currently acting senior coroner for Manchester South, will take up her new role next spring. She will replace outgoing senior coroner Simon Nelson when he retires in May 2017.

She will be responsible for investigating unexplained deaths in the three boroughs and work closely with Greater Manchester Police (GMP).

She said: “I’m delighted to be appointed senior coroner for Manchester North and I am looking forward to starting my new role next year. It’s a privilege to be given the opportunity to serve in such an important position.”

Ms Kearsley, who was brought up in Blackburn, where she worked for a firm of solicitors, sits on the council of the Coroners’ Society of England and Wales and is a member of its local government committee. She has also been appointed a board member for the newly-opened Centre for Contemporary Coronial Law at the University of Bolton.

In 2009 Ms Kearsley was appointed Manchester South deputy (now area) coroner and has been acting senior coroner since July 2016.