Executive Assistant to the Archbishops’ Secretary for Appointments

Personal support and administration

JOB DESCRIPTION

The Archbishops' Advisers for Appointments and Vocations (AAAV) team is a key team within the Office of the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, supporting and advising the Archbishops and the wider Church on the nomination process for senior clergy.

The team supports the work of the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) on the nomination of Archbishops and Diocesan Bishops, those involved in nominating Suffragan Bishops and the selection panels who nominate new cathedral Deans, as well as any other appointments involving the Archbishops.

The team supports senior clergy in their vocation and discernment, working to develop and equip a diverse pipeline of candidates for senior ministry roles.

The team also works in partnership with others to ensure that senior clergy are equipped for leadership in the Church and the vital role it plays in the life of the nation.

This role provides an excellent opportunity of working in a small, friendly, committed, professional and busy team supporting a complex, detailed and fast-paced portfolio of senior appointments, vocational discernment and associated projects.

We work as a close-knit team in beautiful surroundings, part of the Lambeth Palace community and Office of the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, supporting each other with care, flexibility and good humour.

The post-holder will be required to work from Lambeth Palace (on-site) 4 days per week.

We are hosting a webinar where you can hear more about the role and life at the NCI's, this is being held on Friday 21st August 12:00-12:45pm.

Please click here to register for this webinar.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Complex, efficient and strategic diary management involving multiple stakeholders and competing demands, including booking travel and accommodation.
• Being aware of the Archbishops' Secretary for Appointments' objectives, priorities and views, communicating these appropriately and sensitively to external and internal stakeholders.
• Organising meetings and ensuring the Archbishops' Secretary for Appointments is fully briefed and prepared in advance.
• Building and maintaining relationships with key contacts and their offices, keeping the Archbishops' Secretary for Appointments updated, as appropriate.
• Supporting the planning and delivery of nomination processes involving the Archbishops' Secretary for Appointments.
• Ensuring the timely processing of the Archbishops' Secretary for Appointments' expenses and providing wider team financial administrative support.
• Receiving and greeting visitors and being an ambassador for the Archbishops' Secretary for Appointments and the wider team in welcoming guests.
• Providing detailed hospitality administration, coordination and support, e. g. ensuring meetings are set up and catered for appropriately, booking appropriate rooms, ensuring appropriate technology is in place and coordinating visitors.
• Managing and prioritising communications, whether by phone, e-mail, letter or in person, drafting high-quality and timely responses.
• Taking and drafting high‑quality meeting minutes, ensuring key outcomes, decisions and actions are clearly documented.
• Supporting research projects relating to the work of the Archbishops' Secretary for Appointments with preparatory independent research and briefings.
• Drafting and maintaining documents, reports, policies and other materials, informed by an understanding of their context, implications and impact.
• Working alongside and supporting the planning and delivery of senior appointments processes and the wider work of the team, as required.

QUALIFICATIONS

Personal support and administration

Essential

• Strong ability to manage diaries, correspondence and papers for a senior leader.
• Strong ability to draft high‑quality, accurate correspondence, briefs, minutes and other written material.
• Outstanding word‑processing and proof‑reading skills.

Desirable

• Experience of providing personal assistant support at senior level.
• Experience preparing committee papers and planning high‑quality events or meetings.

Digital skills and process improvement.

• Excellent working knowledge of Microsoft Word, Outlook, Excel, Teams, Share Point, the internet and networked systems, with confidence using IT to develop creative solutions.
• Ability to design and implement new processes and systems to improve efficiency.
• Communication, interpersonal skills and stakeholder engagement
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with an understanding of the importance of clear, timely and effective communication.
• Strong interpersonal skills and confidence in engaging professionally with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, including senior leaders.
• Strong emotional intelligence and the ability to respond with sensitivity and pastoral awareness when required.
• Excellent ability to collaborate effectively and work well within a team.
• Judgement, discretion and professionalism
• Demonstrably confidential, discreet and diplomatic in handling sensitive information and situations.
• Excellent judgement in managing urgent, complex and varied matters.
• Strong commitment to delivering consistently high‑quality work.
• Planning, prioritisation and delivery
• Proactive, consistent, organised and forward‑thinking, with strong planning and prioritisation skills.
• Ability to work independently, use initiative and remain calm under pressure.
• High level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Ability to adapt plans quickly in response to changing circumstances and to incorporate new learning into future planning.
• Context

Desirable

• Interest in the mission and ministry of the Church of England and the processes for appointing senior clergy.
• Experience in a Human Resources or recruitment environment.

ABOUT US

Please note that you will not be able to view the role description after the closing date. We suggest that you save a copy of this page before you submit your application.

About The NCIs

The National Church Institutions comprises a wide variety of teams, professions and functions that support the mission and ministries of the Church of England in its vision to be a church, centred on Jesus Christ, for the whole nation - a church that is simpler, humbler, bolder.

We Include. You Belong.

Our Belonging and Inclusion Strategy aims for everyone in the National Church Institutions (NCIs) to feel that they belong, and are valued for who they are and what they contribute.

Together, our people contribute in different ways towards our common purpose, whichever NCI they work in and whatever their background.

• Strive for Excellence
• Show Compassion
• Respect others
• Collaborate
• Act with Integrity

We believe our commitment to belonging and inclusion fuels our progress and drives us forward.

The NCIs are a safe, inclusive workplace for people of all backgrounds and walks of life.

We welcome applications from people of all faiths and of no faith.

We want to encourage applications from a diverse group of people who share our values.

Even if you have never thought about working for us before, if you have the skills and experience we’re looking for then we would like to hear from you.

Use of AI in your application

We appreciate that you may want to use AI tools to help you with your application.

We're happy for you to use AI to come up with ideas and help structure your thoughts, but you shouldn't use AI to fabricate information or write your whole application for you.

One of our values is integrity, and although we want you to demonstrate your best self, we don't want an AI-generated persona.

If you simply copy and paste AI-generated content into your application, this will reduce your chances of success.

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