About the role

Faith and Public Life

The Faith and Public Life Department is responsible for the national-level engagement of the Church of England with public policy, ethics and political life, relations with other churches and faith communities and theological support for the Church’s concerns. The team is formally responsible to the Archbishops’ Council (i.e. to the national Church as an institution) and also gives direct support to the ministries of the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, and to those of the 26 bishops who sit in the House of Lords.

A photo showing the Lords Spiritual in their formal robes at the State Opening of Parliament

It is a broad remit, which reflects the breadth of the Church’s mission and relationships across the whole country and the way the Department operates needs to reflect the breadth of the Church. The Department manages a number of projects which enhance the Church of England’s ability to drive social change. Current projects include:

  • a Social Impact Investment programme;
  • the support of disabled people in the church; and
  • helping support dioceses and parishes to develop land for housing.

The sub-teams who lead on the above work are supported by a dedicated administration and support team.

View the Faith & Public Life department's org chart

An image of a woman serving meals

Your role

As the Director, your role will be to ensure that the team’s work serves the Church’s mission, and to give strategic leadership to a diverse team of highly skilled and experienced staff, liaising closely with the Church’s governance structures (e.g. the Archbishops’ Council and relevant committees, the Archbishops and other bishops) and other departments of the National Church Institutions. The Department has come together from different backgrounds over the last three years, so you will continue the work of building the team. 

You will not be expected to be an expert in every aspect of the Department’s work but will bring depth and wisdom to back up the expertise of your staff team. A good grounding in public and/or political theology and understanding of civil society would be a helpful background to supporting the most fast-moving areas of the team’s work. You will have scope to take the lead in aspects of the work within FPL’s remit, especially where you bring specific experience and expertise.

As Director you will be a full member of the Archbishops’ Council’s Senior Management Group (SMG) and the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Advisory Forum of senior staff (AAF). You will report to the Secretary General and will line manage the lead staff of the various FPL sub teams.

The National Church Institutions are likely to be subject to some change in structure in the next few years, as and when the National Church Governance Measure is enacted and comes into effect. The principal effect of the Measure is to replace the Archbishops’ Council with a new national body, Church of England National Services, which will include the Faith and Public Life team alongside other national functions. As Director you will need to lead the team through these changes.

About You

The Church of England is for everyone and we want to reflect the diversity of the community the Church serves across the whole country. Therefore, while of course we welcome all applications from interested and suitably experienced people, we would particularly welcome applicants from UK Minoritised Ethnicities (UKME)/Global Majority Heritage (GMH) and other under-represented groups.

This post carries an occupational requirement to be a Christian (in accordance with the Equality Act 2010).

You'll be a credible interlocutor with bishops, academics and others on the application of theology to public affairs. In order to be successful you will need:

  • high-level professional skills in one or more disciplines such as public ethics, government relations, business development, media relations, external relations, or stakeholder communications
  • the ability to think theologically, applying a theological understanding of mission and of practical theology to public affairs
  • proven experience of building relationships and working collaboratively with leaders in politics, business, or faith networks in order to deliver strategic outcomes
  • clear understanding of trends and current/emerging debates in public affairs and faith relations
  • good knowledge of the Church of England, its doctrine and its diversity of church tradition, sympathy with its mission and values, and an ability to work across all those church traditions
  • experience of leading and creating teams and bringing together high-performing individuals, working together in a complex environment, whilst supporting all staff to build agile, engaged, inclusive, high performing teams.

Download the role profile to view the full job description and person specification.

Remuneration and Benefits

The salary for this role is £100,000 per annum.

Our benefits include:

  • Age-related employer pension contributions between 8-15% of salary. We will also match any pension contributions you make up to an additional 3% of salary.
  • 30 days annual leave plus bank holidays and three additional 'NCI days'
  • Structured induction programme and access to a range of development opportunities
  • Access to Occupational Health, and an Employee Assistance Programme 
  • Opportunity to the Civil Service Sports & Social Club, and get involved in a range of staff networks, groups and societies

We aim to be as flexible as we can in your work pattern to support you with other commitments, and to give a good work-life balance.