PA to the Dean and Office Administrator

Introduction

Role Purpose

Southwark Cathedral has been a place of Christian worship for over 1400 years. Now it stands on the vibrant and exciting regenerated south bank of the Thames surrounded by cultural venues such as Tate Modern, Shakespeare’s Globe and Borough Market, the offices of major companies as well as schools and diverse residential communities. It is an inclusive Christian community that offers a welcome to all. 

This is a key role at Southwark Cathedral supporting the Dean and the Sub-Dean. This secretarial role will primarily feature management of a busy personal diary, correspondence and broader administrative support for the Dean in his capacity as Dean of Southwark, Chair of Chapter and CEO of the Cathedral.

The role holder will also support the Cathedral team as the Office Administrator – responsible for a range of office duties relating to staff wellbeing & socials, office equipment & spaces and the Cathedral’s general enquiries email address. 

Main Duties and Responsibilities

For the Dean

• Manage the Dean’s diary: including making appointments, arranging meetings, scheduling preaching and other liturgical arrangements, programming annual schedules (such as Bishops Staff Meetings, chaplaincy and wider public commitments) - keeping Outlook diaries up to date with any changes and making travel arrangements;
• Prepare the Dean’s weekly diary file, including the preparation of any meeting papers or briefs for the week ahead; 
• Provide administrative support for the Dean in relation to their attendance at meetings associated with the governance of the Cathedral, including Chapter, Finance Committee, Fabric Advisory Committee and Board of Enterprises. This will include liaising with colleagues on the Dean’s availability for upcoming meetings, any research the Dean requires and preparation of paper packs for such meetings. Minute taking will not usually be required, but may be requested from time to time in liaison with members of staff usually responsible for the minutes; 
• Draft, file and send outgoing correspondence on the Dean’s behalf and process incoming correspondence;
• Support the Dean in all their working relationships including building and maintaining excellent relationships with Chapter Members and Committee Members, the Bishop’s staff and with the wider Diocese, as well as with congregation members, neighbours, commercial partners, professional advisers and other third-party organisations relating to the Dean’s work;
• Set up meetings including room set up and refreshment provision as required; 
• Assist the Dean with the processing of their expenses; 
• Work with the Governance & Committees Manager on Gifts Registry declarations for the Dean; 
• Provide administrative support to bodies the Dean chairs, e.g. Southwark Cathedral Development Trust, the Deans Fund and other Cathedral-associated bodies; 
• Update the Cathedral database in support of the Dean’s work.  
• Provide administrative and practical support for Dean’s events e.g. lectures, receptions and breakfasts with local stakeholders

For the Sub-Dean

• Supporting the Sub-Dean with diary management: making appointments, arranging meetings, and scheduling preaching and other liturgical arrangements;
• Assist with inducting new parishioners: management of database, organising Welcome Evenings etc.;
• Assist with administration relating to the Cathedral’s schools: preparing the liturgical rota, filing and distribution of school clergy admissions forms;
• Other administrative support on an as needed basis

Office Administration 

• Receiving, distributing and responding to emails sent to the Cathedral’s general information email address;
• Ordering stationery, office equipment and consumables in line with the Cathedral’s approach to sustainability and ethical buying;
• Ensuring the Cathedral’s printing and franking equipment is kept fully functional, and liaising with our contractors when issues arise;
• Ensuring that the staff keep offices, reception area, print room, stationery area, staff kitchen and facilities clean, tidy and supplied;
• Co-ordinating Staff Meetings, including booking suitable space and organising refreshments for the meeting; 
• Organising staff social events, outings and meals; 
• Providing administrative support on Cathedral projects as and when they arise.
• Ensuring the Cathedral’s First-Aid kits are kept supplied and in date.

General Duties and Expectations 

• Provide general administrative assistance in the context of a busy office; 
• Support other teams on an ad hoc basis when required;
• Promote the mission, purpose and values of the Cathedral; 
• Ensure that the highest standards of professional performance are maintained & ensure professional skills are regularly updated through participation in training and development activities. 

Person Specification (E) = Essential    (D) = Desirable 

Skills & Aptitudes 

• Excellent verbal communication skills, including a friendly & efficient phone manner (E)
• Excellent interpersonal skills and an ability to communicate with a wide range of stakeholders (E)
• Able to maintain confidentiality at all times (E) 
• Strong writing skills (E)  
• Able to manage the formal processes of meetings in a proactive way (E)
• Proficient with MS Office, including Outlook, Word, Excel & PowerPoint (E)
• Well organised, with good prioritisation skills (E)
• Organised approach to physical and digital filing, naming & storing of documents (E)
• Able to take ownership of tasks & complete them with minimal supervision (E)
• Able to draft agendas and papers from an outline brief (D)

Knowledge & Experience 

• Experience of working in an office environment (E)
• Experience of working with virtual-meeting platforms such as Zoom & MS Teams (E)
• Experience of working with and administering databases, summarising information in an easy-to-understand format (E)
• Experience of diary management (E)
• Understanding of the Church of England, its structures and liturgy (D)
• Experience of minute-taking and producing summaries of outcomes and actions resulting from meetings (D)

Personal Attributes 

• Highly organised, able to work to deadlines (E)
• Proactive problem solver (E)
• Flexible and cooperative team player (E)
• Self-motivated (E)
• Demonstrates sympathy for the vision, mission & values of Southwark Cathedral (E)