Vicar - House for Duty, Waltham St Lawrence and Shottesbrooke, Berkshire

Overview

The Benefice of Waltham St Lawrence and Shottesbrooke are seeking our new Vicar (House for Duty)

Come to rural Berkshire for your new role!

We are two welcoming, friendly churches in Waltham St Lawrence and Shottesbrooke committed to reflecting God’s love in our own lives and sharing that love with others. We are looking for a Priest, to share in our ministry, bringing a special focus on family outreach.

We are praying for a priest who will be;

• open hearted and welcoming to everyone
• a good communicator across all ages
• a team player with a love of pastoral work driven with energy, vision, and enthusiasm to engage as a visible and appreciated presence in our village communities
• encouraging to those who are seeking faith and answers in today’s world

We offer:

• a prayerful, supportive, and encouraging team - committed to assisting you to thrive in the role
• many years of fellowship, affection and musical expression
• an attractive 4-bed detached house in the picturesque village of Waltham St Lawrence, close to Reading, Bracknell and Maidenhead, with excellent train links to London and outstanding local schools

For an informal discussion, please contact: The Ven Stephen Pullin, Archdeacon of Berkshire on archdeacon.berkshire@oxford.anglican.org  or 07435798846.

All appointments are subject to acceptable pre-appointment checks, including a satisfactory Enhanced DBS Check

Closing date for applications:  Thursday 9 May 2024
Interviews: Wednesday 29 May 2024

Introduction

WE OFFER:

• Happy churches who welcome and embrace their communities.
• People of faith in Jesus Christ and commitment to his word and ministry.
• A strong musical tradition from young to old with talent and dedication at WSL and bell ringing expertise led from Shottesbrooke.
• Outreach successes, like the breakfast café, recent Harvest Supper, teas and community events.
• Traditional service content and a varied team of long-serving helpers.
• Ability to respond to new situations, as we did with online services and “Virtual Voices”.

Main Responsibilities

What do we need?

A good communicator and listener who will lead, teach, inspire, and guide their congregation, taking their passion and commitment to God out into the wider community.

What do we want to happen?

A vicar to arrive, pick up the committed people who attend church, love them and then work with them to expand our mission and the way forward. A vicar who is comfortable in formal settings with due reverence but also can connect with people and engage and converse with all age groups and backgrounds.

What is the potential?

To sustain the legacy of faith in the community of Waltham St Lawrence and Shottesbrooke. Our Lord commanded us all to spread the good news that Christ died for our sins and came to save us. The immediate community is around 1,000 adults and up to 1,500 when including children.

How do we manage this?

In addition to the House + 2 days post, the WSL & SH PCCs are willing to fund an additional day for the priest to help manage the workload in the form of an honorarium. There are experienced people in place to support all aspects of running the church, so the incumbent’s role will be to lead, equip and oversee teams rather than being expected to be directly involved in everything.

The Ideal Candidate

WE ARE SEEKING:

• Excitement to take the gospel out to the community through the school, community groups and individual visits.
• Compassionate, engaging and considerate leadership.
• A leader in the power of prayer who will guide us in intercession to God our Father.
• A culture of listening, valuing and combining diverse feelings and aims.
• A great teacher who can help us all with the complexities of understanding the bible, showing our community that God is not only relevant to them, but wants to show his saving love for all.
• Leadership to respect but evolve honoured traditions to appeal to younger generations.
• Improved engagement with the many warm and loving aspects of our local communities.

About us

The Diocese of Oxford

Together as a Diocese we are engaged on a journey towards a Common Vision of what it means to be a Christ-like Church, and what we are therefore called to do together.  Under the leadership of Bishop Steven, we are guided on this journey by the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-11) which shows us that to be more Christ-like means becoming more contemplative, compassionate and courageous.

We are also seeking to understand where God wants us to focus our energies and will be exploring six potential focus areas over the coming year:

• To make a bigger difference in the world and serve the poor
• To share our faith with adults, children and young people and grow the church in every place; rural, urban and suburban
• To plant new churches and congregations everywhere we can
• To serve every school in our community
• To put the discipleship of all at the heart of our common life and set God’s people free.