You will find a warm welcome in our five village communities.

We are looking for a Rector whose lively personal faith is founded on prayerful spirituality. We would like our new Rector to have a commitment to church growth, a desire to develop outreach among children and young people (including those at the local schools) and a heart to encourage the growth of lay ministry.

Where are we?

The five parishes in the Benefice are situated in a rural area of outstanding beauty in the south-west of Northamptonshire, close to the borders of Warwickshire and Oxfordshire, and within the Deanery of Brackley.

Fiveways Benefice comprises the churches of St Leonard’s in Aston le Walls; St John the Baptist in Boddington; Holy Cross in Byfield; St Nicholas’ in Eydon and St Mary’s in Woodford Halse. It is typically rural, being equidistant between Banbury and Daventry and within easy reach of other local towns such as Southam and Towcester. However, its position offers easy motorway access via M1, M6 and M40 to Northampton, Milton Keynes, Coventry, Oxford and Birmingham, with all the educational, social, cultural and medical needs they provide. The Benefice is only 75 miles north-west of London, which is readily accessible by train from Banbury.

Applications preferred from our website Diocese of Peterborough | Vacancies (peterborough-diocese.org.uk) or by emailing the PA to the Archdeacons: pa.archdeacons@peterborough-diocese.org.uk

As we look for and encourage clergy to join the diocese we are committed to providing them with good and well maintained housing, a decent stipend and appropriate training and support. In turn, we look for certain commitments:

• to share with the Bishop in the cure of souls, and to work strategically for growth in numbers among the worshipping community
• to teach Christian discipleship including the principles of giving
• to take seriously the pastoral and missional opportunities of occasional offices, aiming for good working relationships with funeral directors and others
• to enable the full participation of children and young people in the whole life of the church, and to develop mission among the younger generations
• to be involved in both church and other local schools as far as possible, actively seeking opportunities for mission and preferably offering a chaplaincy role and leading collective worship rather than chairing the governing body
• to be involved in deanery and diocesan activities and in the life of their local community
• to promote and enable lay ministry in both church and community
• to take part in our ministry review process, consisting of a three-year rolling programme: a pastoral visit by me to your home, a formal review by a member of my senior team, and a review of training needs
• to engage with the continuing ministerial development programme offered by the diocese and in personal study, nurturing your own spirituality
• to hold a current DBS certificate, to undergo safeguarding training as required by the bishop, and to follow and promote the diocesan safeguarding policy.

The ideal candidate will possess the vision and skill to lead a large rural Benefice forward by building on recent developments and initiatives. He or she will not be afraid of being innovative and inspiring change, whilst respecting those with more traditional views, working with the parishes to agree the way forward.

We are looking for a team player who is:

• Of strong faith and committed to spreading the Christian message. Aware of the need to be a visible presence in the community, joining in with the activities of all five parishes, especially during the weekends, and aware of the needs and expectations of rural communities.
• Capable of dealing diplomatically and in a timely way with the sometimes-conflicting requests and requirements between the Parishes.
• Willing and able to delegate some administrative matters to lay members, to allow sufficient working time for pastoral care.
• Committed to providing effective pastoral care – including visiting parishioners in their own homes, in hospitals and in care homes where appropriate – and helping make the church relevant to the community as a whole.
• Enthusiastic about the scope which exists to foster co‐operation with local schools and able to engage effectively with young people, in order to encourage them and their families to attend church services.
• Readily mobile and possessing a full driving licence. Energetic and outgoing, possessing a sense of humour and a stout pair of Wellingtons. Aware of the challenges of working in a rural area.
• Computer literate in the use of email and word processing software, sufficient to be able to communicate electronically both within and outside the five parishes. Able to maintain the Benefice Facebook and Church Desk links.

You will not be alone. We have an excited group of volunteers to work with you.