Next Steps

If you would like to apply, please complete the online application form via AAAD Pathways. The closing date for applications is 26th May 2022. Please be aware that the online application system will close at midnight on this day.

We have produced guidance notes to help you prepare your application which we would encourage you to read before applying.

The appointment process

Professor Rama Thirunamachandran has been invited by the Archbishop of Canberbury to chair the panel which has the responsibility to nominate the next Dean. The other members of the appointment panel are:

Voting members

  • The Reverend Canon Steve Coneys (College of Canons representative)
  • The Right Reverend Rose Hudson-Wilkin (Bishop of Dover)
  • Dr John Moss (Archbishop’s Council representative)
  • The Very Reverend Catherine Ogle (Cathedral’s representative nominated by the Archbishop)
  • The Most Reverend and Right Honourable Justin Welby (Archbishop of Canterbury) 

Non-voting members

  • Mrs Helen Dimmock (Ecclesiastical Secretary to the Crown and Lord Chancellor)
  • Mr Stephen Knott (Archbishops’ Appointments Secretary)

Interviews

As part of the interview process, we make use of psychometric profiling to support appointment and discernment work. Shortlisted candidates will be invited to complete psychometric questionnaires and discuss the themes from these with an external consultant.

The interviews are scheduled to take place on 30th June and 1st July in Canterbury.

Stipend

The current stipend for Deans is £38,050 per annum (from April 2022). The role will be offered under Common Tenure.

Eligibility & pre-employment enquiries

To be appointed as Dean you need to have been ordained for at least six years. Applicants should have the right to live and work in the United Kingdom. The appointed candidate will need to satisfactorily complete an Enhanced DBS check and pre-appointment occupational health clearance.

Safeguarding

Experience of your competence in managing safeguarding forms a key part of the discernment process, as well as enquiries to reassure the appointing panel that you are not a safeguarding risk.

Shortlisted candidates will be asked to complete a confidential declaration and your bishop will provide a Clergy Current Status Letter (CCSL), prior to interview, having examined your blue file. We will also ask your referees to comment on your approach to managing safeguarding.

In the event of safeguarding concerns being raised, the Archbishops’ Secretary for Appointments will liaise with your bishop, the Chair of the panel and the National Safeguarding Team (NST) for advice and direction on how to proceed. If any issues raised cannot be resolved within the timescales for the appointment process, you may be asked to withdraw.

Induction and Development

A transition coach will be available to support the next Dean as she or he takes up this new ministry. The new Dean will also be invited to attend safeguarding training alongside a series of other induction meetings to help them flourish in their new role.

Further questions

If you have any questions about the application process or would like to discuss the role, please email aaad.office@churchofengland.org.