Children and Families Leader | Wonersh Church

The successful candidate will have a strong and vibrant Christian faith and a deep desire to share God’s love through ministry with children and their families within the church and the local community. They will be warm, organised and proactive, with a deep understanding of children. They will oversee and organise the children and families work at St. John’s church Wonersh, with particular emphasis on growing the primary age group and making lasting relationships with families within the Parish.

Aims and Values

• To nurture children and young people within the church family and the wider community to become lifelong disciples of Christ
• To help children grow deep roots in their faith
• To reach out to children and young people in the community of Wonersh and Blackheath
• To build relationships with parents across the community as a whole

The Role

We are at an exciting moment in our children and families work. Our children’s ministry program has enjoyed significant growth over the last three years, and we are now looking for someone who is ready and enthusiastic to continue developing this area of our church life. The job holder will have the opportunity to shape the role by identifying and implementing new ways of discipling children and young people within the church and developing creative outreach to all children, young people and their families within the parish community. The role is an integral part of our church leadership team, working largely with children below the age of ten. Reporting to the Vicar, the job holder will be responsible for overseeing all aspects of St. John’s Church children and families ministry, through the management of related volunteer teams.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

• To review and develop the strategy for children and families ministry, in liaison with the PCC and staff team.
• To advocate for children’s ministry within the wider vision of the church and PCC.
• To lead, safely recruit, train and support the teams of volunteer leaders who serve within the children and families ministry.
• Planning and co-leading the first Sunday of the month All Age service.
• To ensure adequate and efficient administration of each of the children’s groups and their corresponding teams (registers, safe-guarding, buying materials, creative programme planning, attendance, communication with group members, parents and the wider church).
• To have a thorough understanding of Safeguarding policies and the commitment to work within and adhere to them.
• To provide pastoral support for parents as required.
• To plan and lead an appropriate annual programme of special events for children and families in the community throughout the year, including during the holidays.
• To continue building on our close ties with Wonersh and Shamley Green Primary School by overseeing the Prayer Space and running Easter workshops.
• To network with other leaders in the diocese and deanery, taking part in joint events where appropriate.
• To undergo regular relevant training as identified with your line manager to keep skills and knowledge up to date.

Other responsibilities include

• Involvement in all staff meetings.
• Being a visible presence in the life of the church and village.
• Overseeing the budget for Children’s and Families work with accountability to the Treasurer.
• Attending termly Children and Families Committee meetings to report back in detail on activities, plans and expenditure.

Experience and Skills Required

The job holder must be able to demonstrate the following:

• The ability to work collaboratively as part of the church teams, including the leadership team.
• An understanding of family culture and the issues faced by young families today.
• The ability to build an easy, open rapport with the church community.
• A full driving licence.
• Up-to-date IT skills and understanding of social media.

Personal Qualities

The job holder should:

• Have strong organisational and leadership skills.
• Have good interpersonal skills and be at ease with children and adults.
• Be able to motivate themselves and others.
• Be a good team player, able to work with, support and encourage other leaders.
• Be able to inspire children and listen to their voices.
• Be flexible and innovative, able to adapt to changing circumstances and to develop new ways of working.
• Be comfortable working within an inclusive, open evangelical, Anglican Church located in a village setting.
• Model the lifestyle of the PCC’s inclusive evangelical Anglican ethos to the children and their adults in both public duties and private choices.

Place of Work

Your places of work will be across the following areas:

• St John the Baptist Church, Wonersh, GU5 0PG. This is the main place of worship on a Sunday for people with families.
• St Martin’s, Blackheath, GU4 8RA.
• Lawnsmead Hall (GU5 0PQ) where the children’s activities often occur.
• The Vicarage, Wonersh, which will be available for specific activities, especially on a Sunday, and is where your office is located.

Review

There will be a probationary period of six months and annual reviews of job description and performance with the Vicar. Note - There is a genuine occupational requirement that the jobholder is a Christian, comfortable working within an Evangelical Anglican Context. Appointment is subject to satisfactory references and a satisfactory DBS disclosure at an enhanced plus level.