Could you be the Priest we are looking for?

We are seeking a Priest-in-Charge to serve the Middle Esk Moor Benefice base in Egton on the North Yorkshire Moors. The context is a very specific one. Whitby Deanery is geographically large and very sparsely populated. A coincidence of retirements has offered us the opportunity to re-examine how we serve an lead in this whole area.

Part of the work of the person appointed will be to serve the Middle Esk Moor benefice as described in the Parish Profile. There will also be an expectation to work with clergy and lay people, across the deanery but specifically in the neighbouring benefice of The Moorlands (based around Danby / Castleton) to look to establish a church life and ministry in the moorland communities that is workable and sustainable.

This is a post for a priest who is committed to the future mission of the Church of England in a deep rural setting. It is an interim post for three years, extendable once for another three years if this is thought to be appropriate and effective.

Closing Date: noon Thursday 2nd February 2023

Interviews: Monday 13th February 2023

• The appointed person will have pastoral and sacramental responsibility for the Middle Esk parishes
• Encourage and enable collaboration and cooperation between the parishes whilst respecting their individual characters and styles of worship.
• To work alongside deanery colleagues to offer support to the Moorland parishes which are currently in vacancy.
• As part of Living Christ's Story to share skills and gifts across parish boundaries
• To help grow and reshape mission and ministry across the deanery
• Take a lead in looking at the future of churches and the use of church buildings across the deanery.

We are praying our Priest in Charge will:

• Assist our benefice and other benefices in the deanery in mapping the sustainable future of ministry, especially in rural areas.
• Show an appreciation of rural life, it's benefits and challenges
• Show a strong ecumenical approach, fostering ecumenical relations and activities.
• Value and support individuals who wish t use their skills in lay ministry.
• Be involved in the life of each community, including nurturing links with primary schools.

The Diocese of York, led and guided by Archbishop Stephen Cottrell, takes in much of North and East Yorkshire. As the largest diocese in England, geographically, the area is very diverse, featuring a multitude of needs and opportunities. This includes the bustling urban centres of York, Hull and Middlesbrough, the beautiful North Yorkshire Moors National Park, and the incomparable Yorkshire Coast; as well as areas of deprivation in some of our urban and smaller rural and coastal communities.

Our mission and ministry relies on thousands of people - lay and ordained, volunteer and paid. Our diocesan teams provide a wide range of support services to our mission and ministry, including lifelong learning for ministry, the care of church buildings, and safeguarding. Together, we are striving to be a people who are ‘Living Christ’s Story’. We want to be a simpler, bolder, humbler church which in its diversity reflects the communities it serves. We are bringing renewed focus and fresh energy to achieving our aims:

• Becoming more like Christ

• Reaching those we currently don't

• Growing in discipleship, influence and numbers

• Transforming our finances and structures

Our approach is aligned with a commitment to the best of our parochial inheritance and to the poorest communities, and to the financial realities we face.

Under current immigration rules, it is not generally possible for us to appoint clergy who are not already eligible to work in the UK.

Informal enquiries are welcome:

The Bishop of Whitby, the Rt Revd Paul Ferguson |bishopofwhitby@yorkdiocese.org |
01642 593273

The Archdeacon of Cleveland, the Ven Dr Amanda Bloor | adcl@yorkdiocese.org |
01642 706095

Appointment is subject to a satisfactory Enhanced DBS disclosure.