Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore, a ...

Inga Jane Kennedy, (born 7 September 1962) is a Scottish nurse and senior

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

officer. Seemingly from 2017–2019, she served as Head of the

Royal Navy Medical Service The Royal Navy Medical Service is the branch of the Royal Navy responsible for medical care. It works closely with Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service. History The history of the service can be traced back to 1692 when treatment for ...

and Medical Director General (Naval). She is currently the most senior female officer in the Royal Navy by year of promotion. She previously served as Matron-in-Chief of the

Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service (QARNNS) is the nursing branch of the British Royal Navy. The Service unit works alongside the Royal Navy Medical Branch. As of 1 January 2006, according to former Ministry of Defence junior minist ...

(2011–2015) and Inspector General of the

Defence Medical Services The Defence Medical Services (DMS) is an umbrella organisation within the Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence in the United Kingdom. It consists of the Defence Medical Services Group, part of Strategic Command (United Kingdom ...

(2015–2017).

Early life and education

Kennedy was born on 7 September 1962 in

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

, Scotland to Rhoda and Richard Kennedy. She studied nursing at Queen Margaret College, Edinburgh, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree. She also studied for a

postgraduate diploma A postgraduate diploma (PgD, PgDip, PGDip, PG Dip., PGD, Dipl. PG, PDE) is a postgraduate qualification awarded after a university degree, which supplements the original degree and awards them with a graduate diploma. Countries that award postg ...

at the

University of Greenwich The University of Greenwich is a public university located in London and Kent, United Kingdom. Previous names include Woolwich Polytechnic and Thames Polytechnic. The university's main campus is at the Old Royal Naval College, which along with it ...

Nursing career

Kennedy is both a

Registered Nurse A registered nurse (RN) is a nurse who has graduated or successfully passed a nursing program from a recognized nursing school and met the requirements outlined by a country, state, province or similar government-authorized licensing body to o ...

(RN) and a Registered Midwife (RM). She worked as a nurse in the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

(NHS) from 1980 to 2000.

Military service

Kennedy's military service began as a reservist: she joined the

Royal Naval Reserve The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original Ro ...

in 1987. From 1998 to 2000, she undertook full-time reserve service and was a Senior Midwife in the

Royal Naval Hospital Gibraltar The Royal Naval Hospital Gibraltar (RNH Gibraltar), formerly the British Military Hospital Gibraltar (BMH Gibraltar), was a military hospital founded c. 1903 to provide healthcare for British military personnel and local sailors. The facility, l ...

. In 2000, Kennedy moved from the reserves to join the regular

(QARNNS). She was promoted to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

on 30 June 2005. She served in Afghanistan at the Joint Forces Command in 2011. She was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on 21 November 2011. From 2011 to 2015, she served as Matron-in-Chief (i.e. head) of the QARNNS. She was also Deputy Assistant Chief of Staff (Healthcare) at

Navy Command Headquarters Navy Command is the current headquarters body of the Royal Navy, and as of 2012 its major organisational grouping. It is a hybrid, neither a command, nor simply an installation. Royal Navy official writings describe Navy Command Headquarters both ...

from 2012 to 2015. She was promoted to

commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore, a ...

on 9 February 2015. From 2015 to 2017, she served as Inspector General of the

and was based at the Headquarters of the Surgeon General. In this role, she was responsible for inspecting medical departments across the armed forces, be it a sick bay on a ship or a hospital in a foreign posting. In 2017, she was appointed Head of the

Royal Naval Medical Service The Royal Navy Medical Service is the branch of the Royal Navy responsible for medical care. It works closely with Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service. History The history of the service can be traced back to 1692 when treatment for ...

and Medical Director General (Naval). As such, she is also a member of the

Second Sea Lord The Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (formerly Second Sea Lord) is deputy to the First Sea Lord and the second highest-ranking officer to currently serve in the Royal Navy and is responsible for personnel and naval shore establish ...

's Board of Management and serves as the medical adviser to the

Admiralty Board The Admiralty Board is the body established under the Defence Council of the United Kingdom for the administration of the Naval Service of the United Kingdom. It meets formally only once a year, and the day-to-day running of the Royal Navy is ...

Personal life

In 2014, Kennedy married Mark Durkan.

Honours

In 2012, Kennedy was appointed an

Honorary Nursing Sister to The Queen The Medical Household is the medical part of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. It mainly comprises a range of Physicians and Surgeons to the Sovereign and to the Royal Household. None have more than a nominal or occasion ...

(QHNS). In the

2017 New Year Honours The 2017 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours were awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

, she was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(CBE) in recognition of her service with the Defence Medical Services. She is also a recipient of the

Operational Service Medal for Afghanistan The Operational Service Medal for Afghanistan is a campaign medal previously awarded by the Ministry of Defence of the United Kingdom for service by British Armed Forces personnel in support of the post-2001 Afghan War. Operational Service Meda ...

, the

Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du jubilé d'or de la Reine Elizabeth II) or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2002 to mark the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

, the

Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

, the

Volunteer Reserves Service Medal The Volunteer Reserves Service Medal (VRSM) is a medal which may be awarded to members of the Volunteer Reserves of all branches of the British Armed Forces - the Royal Naval Reserve, the Royal Marines Reserve, the Army Reserve and the Royal Auxil ...

(for 10 years service in the reserve), and the Naval Long Service and Good Conduct Medal (for 15 years service in the regulars). In June 2021, Saga Cruises announced in a press release that Commodore Inga J. Kennedy CBE QHNS QARNNS, has been named godmother of Saga Cruises’ newest ship, the spirit of adventure. Kennedy has followed the footsteps of HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, who was Godmother to sister ship Spirit of Discovery.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, Inga Jane Royal Navy commodores 1962 births Living people Scottish nurses Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service officers Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Alumni of Queen Margaret University Alumni of the University of Greenwich Scottish midwives National Health Service people British women nurses Royal Navy personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Royal Navy Medical Service officers People from Aberdeen Royal Naval Reserve personnel Women's Royal Naval Service officers