Parish Share Enabler

DURHAM DIOCESAN BOARD OF FINANCE

JOB DESCRIPTION

TITLE: Parish Share Enabler

TERM: 3 Year Fixed Term, possibility to extend subject to funding

GRADE: Grade 5 - 5.1 £35,461.00

ACCOUNTABLE TO: Head of Finance

LOCATION: Cuthbert House, Stonebridge, Durham, DH1 3RY, with travel within the Diocese.

HOURS: Full Time, 35 Hours per Week – to include occasional weekend and evening working

KEY RELATIONSHIPS:

Parish clergy;

Parish church officers, especially Treasurers;

Deanery leadership;

Senior clergy and diocesan leadership;

Members of the Finance and the Generous Giving Teams;

Growing Churches and Growing Mission Teams;

Communications Team;

National Giving Team.

BACKGROUND:

The cost of ministry in the Church of England is funded primarily by voluntary offers of ‘Parish Share’ which are pledged annually by Parochial Church Councils (the governing bodies of parish churches), then remitted to the Diocese and used to fund the costs of ministry (primarily the costs of parish clergy).   Across the dioceses in the North of England, funding has been made available to dioceses to appoint an enabler to support activities that seek to address trends in declining parish share. This role is to encourage and develop the ability and willingness of parishes to increase the level of parish share that they can sustainably offer such that the overall mission and ministry of the Church is resourced well.

JOB SUMMARY:

The Parish Share Enabler will play a key role in developing an effective parish share system that is appropriate to the context of a Christian church. The postholder will strengthen relationships between the governing bodies of parish churches and the diocese, and build confidence and trust through clear communication, engagement, and transparency around diocesan finances and the services supported through parish share. One of the consequences of which should be the increase in pledged share received by the Diocese in line with the rate of stipendiary increases during the same period.

KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Develop and deliver a multi-year parish share project plan that builds trust, generosity, engagement and understanding between parishes and the diocese which leads to increases in parish share to address the diocesan budget deficit and work towards financial sustainability.

Work with colleagues to provide clear and timely parish share communications to ensure the process is well-understood.

Maintain a clear understanding of the key financial relationships between different Church of England institutions and disseminate this understanding effectively to parish clergy and parish officers.

Act as a key point of contact between parishes and the diocese on parish share, fostering positive and trusting relationships through which the gratitude of the diocese for generous share offers is conveyed.

In conjunction with the Generous Giving Team, facilitate healthy conversations with clergy and church governing bodies around Christian attitudes to giving, money and parish share.

Ensure the parish share system is compliant with the Code of Fundraising practice and assist in promoting it throughout the diocese.

Where necessary, arrange face-to-face meetings and between senior diocesan leaders with parishes.

Track the development of parish share discussions with clergy and church officers, assist in facilitating follow‑up conversations and signposting parishes to diocesan colleagues for further advice or support as required.

Monitor progress using data, insights and feedback to identify trends, evaluate the effect of the work undertaken and report outcomes and learnings. This will include the production of reports in various formats to key stake holders including Bishop’s Council and Diocesan synod amongst others.

This list is not exhaustive and is intended to reflect the main tasks and areas of work.  Changes may occur over time, and after consultation with the postholder, who will be expected to agree any reasonable changes to the job description that are in line with the general nature of the post.

COMMON DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Health and Safety

Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, whilst at work staff must take reasonable care for their own health and safety and that of any other person who may be affected by their acts or omissions.  In addition, they must co-operate with the DDBF with regard to health and safety and not interfere with or mis-use anything provided for their health, safety and welfare.

Confidentiality

Staff must not pass on to unauthorised persons any information obtained in the course of your duties without the permission of their line manager.

Safeguarding

If at any time the post-holder becomes aware of a safeguarding risk or concern, they should report it to the Diocesan Safeguarding Officer at the earliest opportunity.

Equality, Diversity & Inclusivity

The DDBF is committed to promoting a diverse, non-discriminatory and inclusive community that gives everyone an equal chance to learn, work and live free from discrimination, bias and prejudice. To ensure our commitment is put into practice we have an equality policy which includes responsibility for all staff to eliminate unfair and unlawful discrimination, advance equality of opportunity for all and foster good relations.  If at any time the post-holder sees or hears anything that could suggest a breach to our commitment and policy to equality, diversity and inclusivity or has any other reason to be concerned, it should be reported immediately to your line manager.

Genuine Occupational Requirement

Due to the nature of the work, the post holder must be a practicing member of the Church of England, or a full member of a church belonging to Churches Together in Britain and Ireland or the Evangelical Alliance.  This post is exempt under paragraph 3 of Schedule 9 of the Equality Act 2010. The Diocese of Durham supports and promotes the aims of the Church of England.