Dame Barbara Janet Woodward (born 29 May 1961) is a British diplomat and China expert. She served as Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations from 2020 to 2025, having previously been the British Ambassador to China from 2015 to 2020, the first woman to hold that position. She currently serves as a Deputy National Security Adviser to the United Kingdom, responsible for international affairs.Dame Barbara Woodward DCMG OBE, profile, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Retrieved 11 December 2020.

Early years Woodward was born in Gipping, Suffolk, to Arthur Claude Woodward (1921–1992) and Rosemary Monica Gabrielle Fenton (1931−2017)."WOODWARD, Barbara Janet" (2012)"Descendants of John Roper-269323" (13 April 2005)The Diplomatic Service List (2003), p.325."England & Wales births 1837-2006" (retrieved on 24 March 2015)East Anglian Daily Times, "Death Notice, Rosemary Monica Gabrielle (Gay) Woodward", 21 December 2017. Retrieved 12 January 2025. Her father, who served in World War II as an officer of the Suffolk Regiment and won the Military Cross for gallantry,"Issue 36850", London Gazette, 19 December 1944, p.5856. was later elected a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, and her mother taught at Ipswich School.The Observer, "Barbara Woodward – the potential new head of MI6", 14 June 2025. Retrieved 21 August 2025.

Woodward was educated at South Lee School in Bury St Edmunds and at Saint Felix School, a co-educational independent boarding school in Southwold. In 1983, she took a MA in history from St Andrews. She taught English, first at Nankai University and then at Hubei University, in Wuhan, China, between 1986 and 1988. She later learned and mastered Chinese. Her teacher in London gave her the Chinese name Wu Baina (吴百纳 Wú Bǎinà)."英國首位女性駐華大使履新，29年前在中國教英語" (19 March 2015) In 1988 she went to Yale University in the United States to further her studies on international relations, and obtained a postgraduate Master of Arts (MA) degree.

Career Woodward joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in 1994. She served in Russia from 1994 to 1998 as Second (and later First) Secretary, and in China from 2003 to 2009, first as Political Counsellor, then across the whole United Kingdom-China relationship as Deputy Head of Mission, including during the 2008 Summer Olympics. From 2011 to 2015 she was Director General for Economic and Consular Affairs at the FCO.

In February 2015 she was appointed British Ambassador to China, the first woman to hold the position. She was succeeded in September 2020 by Caroline Wilson. In 2015, in a conversation with Lucy D'Orsi, Queen Elizabeth II said that Xi Jinping's officials "were very rude to the ambassador" (referring to Woodward), during an event at Lancaster House, London.

Woodward faced scrutiny for her reluctance to criticise China during her time in that post, according to an article in The Sunday Times. After a number of MPs were sanctioned by China for their criticism of an alleged genocide against the Uyghurs in Xinjiang province, Woodward was accused of being insufficiently robust in dealing with the issue. After leaving her posting in China, Woodward also told the pro-Beijing Global Times newspaper that Taiwan would never have independence.

Woodward was appointed Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations in 2020 and served in the role until 2025.United Nations, "Permanent Representative of United Kingdom Pays Farewell Call on Secretary-General", 3 October 2025. Retrieved 8 October 2025. During her final months of ambassadorship to the UN, she was shortlisted as one of the final two candidates for Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), which ultimately saw Blaise Metreweli appointed. She was subsequently appointed Deputy National Security Advisor under Jonathan Powell.

In 2026 Woodward was a candidate in the election for the position of Chancellor of the University of St Andrews, her alma mater, which was won by Dame Anne Pringle.University of St Andrews, "Dame Anne Pringle elected Chancellor of the University of St Andrews", 24 February 2026. Retrieved 24 February 2026.

Personal life Woodward's hobbies include sports, particularly competitive swimming and tennis. She is a member of the Otter Swimming Club in London and has previously served as its Honorary Secretary.

Awards Woodward was included in the 1999 New Year Honours list and made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth II when she was serving as the First Secretary to Moscow."Supplement to Issue 55354", London Gazette, 31 December 1998, p.24. In 2011, she was included in the Birthday Honours and made a Companion of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (CMG) for services to UK-China relations."Supplement to Issue 59808", London Gazette, 11 June 2011, p.13. In 2016, she was included in the Birthday Honours and promoted to Dame Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (DCMG) for services to UK-China relations. In the 2026 New Year Honours, she was further promoted to Dame Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG) for services to British foreign policy. She is the first female diplomat to be awarded a GCMG.

Notes

References

English language

The Diplomatic Service List. Great Britain: H.M. Stationery Office, 2003. "Descendants of John Roper-269323", Genealogy Web Page of L. David Roper, 13 April 2005. "Change of Her Majesty's Ambassador to China", Foreign & Commonwealth Office: Press Release, 6 August 2014. "WOODWARD, Barbara Janet", Who's Who 2013. London: A. & C. Black, 2012. "Prince William coming to China", China Daily, 6 February 2015. "", Linkedin, retrieved on 24 March 2015. "England & Wales births 1837-2006", Genes Reunited, retrieved on 24 March 2015.

Chinese language

"英任命新駐華大使，強調中英經貿往來", BBC Chinese, 6 August 2014. "英國首位女性駐華大使履新，29年前在中國教英語", China News Service, 19 March 2015.

External links "Barbara Woodward: Britain's first female ambassador to China intends to forge strong links with the growing economic superpower", The Independent, 1 March 2015. Yale Jackson Institute for Global Affairs - M.A. in Global Affairs