KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Church of England has voted to allow women to enter its top ranks as bishops.

The Church’s national assembly, known as the General Synod, approved the historic measure at its meeting in York in northern England Monday, according to UK media reports.

The measure had the support of Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Prime Minister David Cameron.

The vote comes two years after similar legislation failed to reach a two-thirds majority among the General Synod’s lay members, despite approval from bishops and clergy.

The Church of England is part of the Anglican Communion, which has the largest Christian denomination in Britain and a presence in more than 160 countries.

Jamaican-born Chaplain Rose Hudson-Wilkin is tipped to become the Church of England’s first female bishop.

“It will be a big deal,” said Hudson-Wilkin before the church’s decision. She also said: “This has been on the agenda of the Church since the 1920s, from the time of the suffragettes when women were saying actually, we’re human beings, we don’t want to be patted on the head and told: ‘There dear, you’ll be alright doing the flowers or making the cups of tea’.

“We have gifts and skills and abilities and we want what we have to be placed on the table as well.”