At the heart of the calling to serve each of the diverse communities of the region is a renewed commitment and focus on a Transforming Church vision, ‘Growing churches at the heart of each community’. This vision was first discerned in 2009 and has continued to capture the essence of the Church of England Birmingham ministries, mission and energy for innovation. It is expressed uniquely by parishes, in their newly forming Oversight Areas, across refreshed deaneries and as a diocese of multiple charisms. It is a calling to be transformed, and together to be an active, transforming church. We believe that God is sovereign, Jesus is alive, and the Holy Spirit is active among us. At the heart of all our activities is the desire to continue to grow as disciples of Jesus Christ, inviting others to follow him, seeing our churches grow and the city and region transformed.

Interviews will be held on Friday 15 December at Bishop’s Croft, Old Church Road, Birmingham, B17 0BG

References and an Episcopal Reference will be taken up prior to interview.

The Bishop of Birmingham is seeking a spiritually mature, theologically able, liturgically literate and administratively competent Anglican priest to act as Chaplain to support him in his ministry in the Diocese. The role has strategic, liturgical, administrative and pastoral and legal components and the Chaplain will be expected to take initiative in each of these areas. The person appointed will possess wisdom and energy, be hopeful and expectant and able to work in a focused and efficient manner. They will be adaptable, discrete, and able to deal with challenging situations with care and resilience.

The main responsibilities for this role are:

Strategic

• To support the Bishop in liaising with colleagues over matters of strategic development in the mission of the diocese.
• To act as required as the Bishop's personal representative with individuals, to parishes and at particular events/meetings, and on task groups within the Diocese.
• To defend the Bishop from the clamour of the present moment, to assist him in remaining faithful to the strategic priorities of his ministry and to persevere with joy.

Liturgical

• To oversee planning for services in which the Bishop is involved across the Diocese, including confirmations and institutions, and to support the Bishop at these services as requested; to liaise closely with the relevant clergy and congregations.
• To advise on and provide bespoke prayers and liturgies, faithful to the Anglican tradition, for a variety of civic and ecclesiastical occasions.
• To attend the Bishop in the Cathedral on principal feasts and at ordinations, and other major services; and to attend the Bishop on occasion at institutions, licensings and confirmations in the Diocese.

Pastoral and Administrative

• To be a person to whom the Bishop can turn and speak to in confidence.
• To service the Bishop’s Senior Staff Team by acting as secretary, to facilitate, and if required be secretary to, other meetings as required, shaping agendas and ensuring that the Bishop follows through with any agreed actions.
• To be the Bishop’s primary point of contact with clergy and lay leaders, including by managing correspondence and emails to and from the Bishop and his clergy and to alert the Bishop to key pastoral needs among the clergy, including new arrivals into the Diocese, illness, births, bereavement, significant birthdays and so on.
• To work with the Director of Ministry to oversee Ministerial Development Reviews: ensuring that the Bishop receives and responds to reviews.
• To respond to ‘Bishop to Bishop’ enquiries and reference requests as required by the Bishop, seeking and providing Clergy Current Status Letters; and to process movement forms.
• To work with the Diocesan Safeguarding Officer and their team to ensure that clergy safeguarding training and DBS checks are constantly up to date.
• To maintain the database of clergy Permissions to Officiate and the list of retired clergy, to ensure these are constantly up to date.
• To maintain the database of clergy and their family members and all contact and address lists associated with the Bishop’s public ministry and personal relationships.
• To oversee any ministerial paperwork which requires the Bishop’s signature by virtue of his jurisdiction.
• To assist the Bishop in the administration of grants to clergy and their families.
• To support the other Bishop’s Croft Staff in the management of the Bishop’s Office, working with the EA to ensure that the Bishop is fully and appropriately briefed for all engagements.
• To undertake whatever other tasks the Bishop may reasonably require

Legal

• To oversee the administration of the Clergy Discipline Measure and complaint/grievance procedures relating to clergy.
• To be the first point of contact in the Bishop’s Office for safeguarding matters; to liaise with the Diocesan Safeguarding Officer; to attend Core Group case meetings on behalf of the Bishop.
• To be the first point of contact in the Bishop’s Office with the Diocesan Registry, regarding the suspension of benefices and pastoral re-organisations and the issue of licences.
• To act as the Bishop’s Data Protection Compliance Officer for ensuring that the provisions of the UK GDPR are followed; this includes processing subject access requests, maintaining clergy files, and providing advice to the Bishop as necessary.
• Canon C4 Faculty applications

These duties outline those which will fall within the responsibility of the Bishop’s Chaplain. However, as the Bishop of Birmingham is new into this role and the support structures are not finalised, some of these responsibilities may be shared with other roles.

The ideal candidates should have:

• The person appointed will be an ordained Anglican priest who can conduct worship on behalf of the Bishop and therefore the post has a genuine occupational requirement under part 1 of the Equality Act 2010.
• A lively and hopeful Christian faith
• A commitment to seeing Church of England Birmingham grow and flourish
• Spiritual depth; well-formed habits of prayer, engagement with scripture and worship
• A firm grasp and enjoyment of Anglican liturgy
• Pastorally sensitive
• Emotionally intelligent
• Calm under pressure
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Loyal and discrete; able to exercise confidentiality
• Ability to deal appropriately with sensitive information
• Well organised and in the habit of forward-planning
• Diligent with an eye for detail
• Able to deal with a complex administrative load
• Ability to work to tight deadlines and to prioritise
• Ability to work with the Bishop’s agenda

In addition, the post-holder will need to

• Be educated in theology and possess skills in research and critical thinking/analysis
• Be able to travel the breadth of a diverse diocese where public transport is not always available
• Be available outside usual working hours to respond to urgent or immediate issues, particularly in relation to the media
• Be available to attend events outside usual working hours

This post will be responsible to The Bishop of Birmingham

The Chaplain will work from an office at Bishop’s Croft. Housing on site will also be provided.

Salary of £28,545 (equivalent to the diocesan Stipend) plus housing provided for the better performance of the duties of the role and membership of the Church of England Funded Pension Scheme for Clergy

Working expenseswill be reimbursed on a monthly basis from the Bishop’s Office on behalf of the Church Commissioners. Car mileage will be reimbursed at the prevailing Church Commissioners’ rate.

The expectation is of a similar time commitment as a parish priest. As a general rule the Chaplain will be expected to share in morning worship outside office hours, and to keep office hours of 9.00 am to 5.00 pm with a break for lunch. There is an expectation of some work, and ministry being exercised, outside office hours. There will be some evening commitments. The rest day is generally a Friday or Saturday.

There is a generous annual leave allowance per year. This is exclusive of public holidays, however working on some of these days, especially around festivals, will be required for which compensatory time of in lieu is given. The leave year runs from 1 January to 31 December. Holiday dates have to take into account the Bishop’s own holiday dates and that of other staff at Bishop’s Croft where possible and ensure adequate cover in the Bishop’s Office.

The Chaplain is encouraged to have a Spiritual Director, to make an annual retreat, to attend CME and the annual Bishops’ Chaplains Consultation.

In order to facilitate the maintenance of a healthy and balanced ministry and life style, it is recognised that the Chaplain will wish to undertake responsibilities within the life of the Church or wider community that are outside this job description. These should be agreed with the Bishop before being accepted, and, in any conflict of time or interests, commitment to supporting the work of the Bishop will be expected to take priority.

The Church of England Birmingham is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community - a place where all can be themselves and bring their unique identity to their ministry and/or work.

We welcome applications from any individuals who feel that they meet the person specification for any post, in particular from those who are currently under-represented in or staff teams such as those from Global Majority Heritage or UK Minority Ethnic backgrounds, those with visible or invisible disabilities and those who identify as LGBTQI+.

The Bishop of Birmingham and 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.

This role is subject to acceptable pre-appointment checks, including references and a satisfactory Enhanced DBS Check.