Birmingham is the UK’s second city with the youngest urban population in Europe and one of the most lively and diverse regions. Church of England Birmingham covers an area of nearly 300 square miles, including parishes, chaplaincies, new Christian communities and schools across the city of Birmingham and parts of Solihull, Sandwell, Warwickshire and Worcestershire.
Right at the heart of what we do there are over 187 Church of England places of worship with an average weekly attendance of 17,000 from a population of 1.5 million. These churches represent a wide scope of Church tradition and breadth of cultural diversity.

The Director of Mission Support is a new exciting and significant post which will be responsible for further development, join-up and delivery of our mission strategy and for overseeing and coordinating our mission support team. The role will offer opportunity to lead collaboratively across the diversity of our diocese as we seek to make more, and more confident disciples through learning and equipping for mission in our parishes as well as developing new ways of being church.

Our vision and prayer is that encouraging, inspiring, and supporting worshipping communities to grow numerically and spiritually will enable them to be a transforming presence within their communities and a sign of God’s Kingdom. This will involve a commitment to nurture healthy, flourishing local churches with attention to the Five Marks of Mission of the Anglican Communion -

• To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom

• To teach, baptise and nurture new believers

• To respond to human need by loving service

• To seek to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and to pursue peace and reconciliation

• To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth

The Director of Mission Support will oversee and bring greater connection between a number of new and already established key areas of our mission strategy, including

• a focus on growing younger and more diverse through our work with children, youth, families as well as those groups currently under-represented in our churches.
• developing discipleship, evangelism, and missional leadership though learning/mentoring programmes
• through the above, encouraging the formation of new vocations / ministries – lay and ordained, linking up with the work of the Director of Ministry, DDO and colleagues
• supporting parishes and oversight areas to see new growth through new disciples, church planting, revitalisation and fresh expressions of church
• the integration of all areas of mission support with our Transforming Church Action Planning (TCAP) being facilitated in parishes and across deaneries

A number of current staff bring leadership and expertise to the above areas. The Director will therefore manage a skilled team consisting of those leading in the areas of Learning for Discipleship and Mission, New Christian Communities, TCAP, Growing Younger, and a Children’s and Families’ Missioner (CFM) Project Coordinator.

The Director of Mission Support will further play a key role in supporting the Diocese’s People and Places framework for ministry which is currently being implemented, enabling us to plan and organise strategically and sustainably for mission at deanery and diocesan level.

She /he will also be available to support the bishops’ roles as leaders of mission across the diocese and to support episcopally-led initiatives to encourage parishes in their mission endeavours.

We are looking therefore for a passionate advocate for mission, able to work comfortably across the different traditions of the Church of England, and who can help us in delivering our diocesan vision of Transforming Church - growing churches at the heart of each community.

Team Leadership

• Bring leadership, oversight and team-building skills to the development of a focused and collaborative team of mission specialists.
• Be the operational line of report for those leading in the areas of

• TCAP Facilitation (Transforming Church Action Planning)
• Growing Younger
• CFM Project (Children and Families Missioners)
• New Christian Communities
• Learning in Discipleship and Mission

Planning for Mission

• Lead and enable the mission team in supporting parishes in their mission plans through providing resources, facilitation, coaching and guidance, currently offered through Transforming Church Action Plans (TCAP).
• Support local church leaders and Area Deans in the collation of parish mission plans across the new oversight areas and deaneries, facilitating collaboration and sharing of resources.
• Ensure collaboration with the Directors of Community Regeneration, Interfaith Relations, Education, Ministry, as well as colleagues within the mission team, to enable parishes in forming plans that are responsive to their particular context – the opportunities and the challenges.
• Work with the lead for New Christian Communities and the Church Planting Steering Group on developing a vision and strategy that embeds church planting / new Christian communities / revitalisations across all traditions and contexts, and integrates these within local mission plans.
• Along with the lead for New Christian Communities, ensure close networking with regional and national church planting / pioneer/ fresh expressions of church ministry partners, (e.g. the Bishop of Islington and the Gregory Centre), to access resources, information and support.
• Ensure inspirational support, resources and guidance for parishes in their ministry among youth, children and families through the work of the Growing Younger Adviser.
• Encourage the coherence within wider deanery mission plans of the contribution by the current cohort of Children and Families Missioners supported by the CFM Project Coordinator.
• Foster an overall approach to mission which integrates church growth with the prophetic and justice dimensions of proclaiming the kingdom envisaged in the Five Marks of Mission.
• Work with senior colleagues to ensure that diocesan-wide missional activity is coordinated, aligned with strategy and communicated appropriately.

Learning for Mission

• Support the work of the lead for Learning in Discipleship and Mission in ensuring that there are appropriate learning opportunities which foster more confident disciples, leaders in mission, pioneers and evangelists, as well as foundational learning for those going on to licensed or commissioned ministry.
• Contribute to the ongoing development of our modular learning framework via the Pathways platform, with a focus on nurturing more contextual, indigenous missional leadership within the diverse settings of the diocese, including fostering urban estates and UKME / Global Majority Heritage leadership, alongside an understanding of intercultural mission.
• Support the work of the lead for New Christian Communities and Church Planting leadership development in providing / signposting learning for aspiring church-planters Ensure there is good join-up between learning in this and other areas.
• Ensure provision of learning and development opportunities for those working with Youth, Children & Families.
• Collaborate with other learning for ministry practitioners, including the Director of Ministry, Head of Ministry Formation and Director of Ordinands, to develop learning modules as required to support learning pathways for new licensed/commissioned leaders such as Children & Families Workers, Youth Workers, and other Parish Mission Workers.

Strategic Programmes & Management

• Discern along with colleagues and with the Bishop/Executive Board as to where new opportunities may lie for missional interventions and support. Contribute to the development of strategic programmes as required.
• Overall management of current Children’s and Families’ projects and Youth projects funded by Strategic Development Funding.
• Monitoring & Evaluation - ensure that information relating to the areas covered by the role is provided to our Programme Management Office to enable the timely reporting and evaluation of strategic programmes.

Leadership

• We are looking for someone with a strong and prayerful Christian faith and a love for God’s Church, who has the following qualities and experience:
  • A leader of leaders who will enjoy managing and working alongside a skilled team to deliver the mission strategy through envisioning and developing of individuals.
  • A passion for seeing Christians from a diverse range of contexts, church traditions and Christian communities living the mission of Jesus that excites others to follow;
  • A desire to see the development and lifelong learning of disciples in their journey of faith;
  • An ability to get alongside, encourage and equip others for local mission within the vision and strategic priorities of the Church of England, Birmingham;
  • Excellent communication skills and an ability to relate well across a super-diverse diocese.
  • Commitment to mutual flourishing within the Church of England envisaged by the Five Guiding Principles.

Experience/Knowledge

• Previous experience/knowledge should include:
  • Excellent track record of successful line management;
  • Proven ability in strategic development;
  • Experience of managing budgets and funded programmes / plans
  • An appreciation for and understanding of the structures of the Church of England and ways of being church, both inherited and new;
  • Strong experience of safeguarding practices, preferably within the Church of England;
  • Experience of and insight into leading a growing, missional church;
  • Some understanding of children, youth and families work would be desirable;
  • An ability to ground mission experience and praxis in an understanding of theology and missiological principles.
  • An eagerness to learn more and keep up with new research and developments in the area of mission.

Personal

• Personal qualities should include:
  • A warm and open demeanour with a collaborative working style;
  • Ability to inspire others;
  • Ability to quickly build good working relationships with a wide variety of people and styles;
  • A prayerful approach to ministry and an openness to new learning and insights in mission;
  • The capacity to be flexible and to work under pressure, with good levels of personal organisation and an ability to work to deadlines;
  • Confidence in using technology such as smart phones, tablets, laptops and social media;
  • An ability to model a responsible and healthy life balance;
  • Resilience and good humour.
  • Flexibility required to work with PCCs and volunteers, including some evening and weekend meetings.

The post-holder will need to be able to travel the breadth of the diocese.

Due to to this role having a key part in the leading of missional strategy, there is a genuine occupational requirement that the post holder is a committed Christian with a familiarity with the CofE.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

• The Director of Mission Support will report to the Bishop of Aston and relate to the Executive Board responsible for the oversight of high-level strategy and current change programmes, including those funded through the Church Commissioners’ Strategic Development Fund. The board consists of Bishop’s Staff team members including both bishops, archdeacons, Dean and Diocesan Secretary.

• This is a full-time permanent post. (Subject to satisfactory probationary period of 6 months)

• The successful post-holder may be lay or ordained.

• Salary of £50,000 plus membership of the Church Worker’s Pension Scheme (12% employer contribution). If the successful applicant is an ordained Anglican minister, the option of maintaining stipendiary service in the Clergy Pension Scheme is available with the salary reduced due to the higher contribution rate. This salary would currently £48,500.

• Holidays: 5 weeks per year plus Bank Holidays plus 3 additional Diocesan Discretionary Days

• The employer is the BDBF (Birmingham Diocesan Board of Finance) and the post holder will be based at the Diocesan Offices, Citadel, 190 Corporation Street, Birmingham, B4 6QD. We operate a Hybrid working policy and therefore work can be undertaken from home (or any other suitable location) or our office, although all employees are expected to spend 2 days in the office (or at another work location) each week to maintain relationships with colleagues which is an essential aspect of this role.

The Bishop of Aston, Rt Revd Anne Hollinghurst will be pleased to have informal conversations about the role with prospective applicants. To arrange this, please contact her Executive Assistant Rosie Evans on 0121 426 0436 or RosieE@cofebirmingham.com

Deadline for applications: 2nd October 2022

Interviews: 3rd November 2022

We welcome applications from all suitably qualified people, particularly those
under-represented including persons of Global Majority Heritage.

The Church of England Birmingham is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. All post holders are expected to share this commitment. All appointments to roles undertaking regulated activity are subject to pre-appointment checks, including a references and a satisfactory Enhanced DBS Check