School Chaplain and (House for Duty) Associate Priest

School Chaplain, Francis Holland Regent’s Park and (House for Duty) Associate Priest, St Cyprian Church, Clarence Gate.

Francis Holland Regent’s Park and St Cyprian’s Church, Clarence Gate are seeking a School Chaplain and House for Duty Associate Priest to support and build up the spiritual and pastoral life of our school and church communities.

At Francis Holland Regent’s Park pupils are guided to respect and celebrate the differences and needs of others so that they are able to demonstrate empathy in their day-to-day lives. They are encouraged to be kind and considerate and to support the Help Fund, recognising that they have a responsibility to make a positive contribution to society.

We want our pupils to be curious and intellectually enquiring, as well as ambitious, forward-thinking, creative and imaginative, seeking challenge and inspiration in the pursuit of excellence in all aspects of school life. We want our pupils to foster a lifelong love of learning and to embrace the academic and co-curricular opportunities offered at FHS.

Our pupils are supported to be bold, resilient and flexible, enabling them to adapt to the demands of an ever-changing world. They should have the courage to take risks, step out of their comfort zone, and to develop the strength and inner confidence to overcome challenge and adversity. We celebrate effort as well as achievement and contribution.

As a Church of England school , our pupils understand the Christian values that are integral to our school. As an inclusive school they are also respectful and mindful of the faiths and beliefs, within our school community and beyond. Our pupils are proud of our FHS spirit: our history, traditions and community.

The School Chaplain will hold responsibility in two key areas of school life: pastoral and spiritual. The Chaplain’s role will be central in developing moral and spiritual awareness within the pupil and staff body. The successful candidate will have a deep commitment to education and to making a contribution to the shaping of young people’s spiritual thinking and development.

In their leadership of school services at St Cyprian’s Church in conjunction with the school church coordinator, the Chaplain will play a central role in raising within the school community, awareness of and reflection on, Christian values, as well as promoting core school values of Compassion, Knowledge, Perseverance and Spirit.

The Chaplain’s ability to engage with these core values and the religious foundation of the school philosophically and spiritually, is vitally important. They need a sensitive appreciation of the diverse religious make-up of the school and the understanding that for all people – and for young people in particular – of the life-long search for meaning and spiritual understanding.

St Cyprian’s Clarence Gate works in local partnership with St Paul’s Rossmore Road , the Rector of St Paul’s serves as Priest in Charge of St Cyprian’s. As such, the ministry of the Associate Priest will naturally be rooted across both parishes, and opportunities for leading and sharing in worship across both churches are encouraged.

The Associate Priest will be housed in the parish flat for St Cyprian’s Church and serve on the wider team across both St Cyprian’s Church, Clarence Gate and St Paul’s Church, Rossmore Road. Given responsibilities within Francis Holland Regent’s Park this role may develop a closer affinity with St Cyprian’s Church, whilst nurturing spiritual care and lively ministry across the two parishes.

As Associate Priest they will share with the wider clergy team in nurturing and enlivening the worshipping life of the churches, including presiding at Parish Mass, Evensong and other solemnities; preaching and intercession; occasional offices (baptism, wedding and funeral), pastoral care among the congregation; ministry among the sick and dying.

In connection with the role of School Chaplain, the Associate Priest, will bring a particular focus around schools’ ministry across the two churches. The Associate Priest will build up ministry among children and young people across the two parishes; including connection with Christ Church Bentinck CE Primary School and outreach ministry among children and young people in the parish, including on the estates in the parishes. The desire to see the flourishing of children and young people within the life and mission of the church is an essential quality within this role.

St Cyprian’s Church and St Paul’s Church

St Cyprian's Clarence Gate is a mid-sized flourishing congregation within the Anglo-Catholic tradition of the Church of England. St Cyprian’s is sacramental and inclusive. We seek to be faithful in worship, prayer and biblical reflection, and open to the stirring of God’s Spirit in striving for justice, reconciliation and peace in our world. At the heart of our worship is the Sacrament of the Mass, the Eucharist, wherein the Risen Christ is made present and through which we are sent out to be disciples of Christ in our daily life and work. As part of the worldwide Anglican Communion, we are guided by the Five Marks of Mission – Tell, Teach, Tend, Transform, Treasure . These marks of mission encourage us as a local church to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom; baptise and nurture new believers; respond to human need through loving service; challenge unjust structures of society and work for peace and reconciliation; and safeguard the integrity of creation and sustaining the life of the earth.

The Parish Mass at St Cyprian’s is on Sundays at 10:30am both in person and on Zoom. On Solemnities and Feast days this may take the form of a High Mass, on Ordinary Sundays this is a Sung Mass. Choral Evensong is celebrated once a month. A Low Mass is celebrated on Thursday at 1:00pm. We offer a free Chamber Music Series once a month, often featuring upcoming musicians and composers.

For further information about the role, please view the job description below.

To apply online, please visit our website via the Apply button.

Closing date: 9.00am on 24 February 2025.

Early applications are encouraged and will be considered as they are received. The School reserves the right to appoint at any stage.

All appointments at Francis Holland School are conditional upon clearance by the Disclosures and Barring Service (DBS testing).

Francis Holland Schools Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Applicants will be required to undergo our safer recruitment checks and child protection screening appropriate to the post, including checks with past employers and the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). This role is classed as regulated activity with children as it involves teaching, training or supervising children on a day-to-day basis and is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

Francis Holland Schools Trust champions diversity and inclusion in the workplace and strongly encourages applications from all sections of the community.