PART I: THE ROLE
Winchester College seeks a College Chaplain from January 2025, or from a suitable start date in the autumn term for a candidate who is available to start earlier. William of Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, founded the College in 1382, specifying the need for three chaplains, as still exists today, and links with his cathedral remain strong.
The successful candidate must be in Anglican holy orders and in full communion with the Church of England. They will be a graduate and have a proven ability to teach to a high standard in one or more of the academic subjects offered at Winchester College. Essential to the role will be a profound pastoral commitment, with the passion, faith and stamina to minister in good times and bad to a large community of 750 pupils and several hundred staff.
The new Chaplain will take a full pastoral, liturgical, and catechetical role within a chaplaincy team, which currently comprises the Dean of Chapel, the Revd Dr Hester Jones, a College Chaplain, a Senior Lay Chaplain, a College Curate (who is a housemaster) and a Verger. The chaplains are expected to take a full part, with the Dean of Chapel, in the planning, organising and leading of school worship, and to assist in the pastoral and spiritual care of all pupils. The Dean of Chapel in turn, sits on the school’s Pastoral Support Group, representing the Chaplaincy team, and meets regularly with the Second Master to share in the pastoral oversight of the school at large.
Services take place regularly in the College Chapel, in St Michael’s Church, and in Chantry. Boarders make a commitment to one Sunday service each week, which day pupils are also welcome to attend, and all pupils are required to attend a weekly morning service during term. Voluntary Evensongs, Eucharists, and Complines, and seasonal celebrations complete the weekly pattern of worship. The whole school gathers for services in the Cathedral about five times a year. Between 20 and 30 pupils are prepared each year by the chaplains for Confirmation in the College Chapel. The Christian Union and the Parents’ Prayer Group meet regularly and are led by one of the chaplaincy team, currently the College Curate. There is a growing number of occasional offices (weddings, baptisms, funerals, and memorial services) held in the chapels throughout the year.
A thriving Roman Catholic community has strong links with the Abbey of Douai, which provides celebrants for the weekly Roman Catholic Mass. A group known as Faith Circles, for pupils practising other faiths, meets every Sunday. Several other spaces are adaptable for religious worship, including School and New Hall. Chaplains are expected to visit the boarding houses regularly to meet pupils and conduct informal services and discussion groups. The appointed Chaplain will be engaged in creating opportunities to meet with pupils, whether in Boarding Houses or during other activities, for support and for opportunities for discussing the spiritual life, or any other areas of interest or concern.
There is a strong tradition of choral music at the College, with past organists including Thomas Weelkes, Jeremiah Clarke and Samuel Sebastian Wesley. The treble line is provided by the Quiristers, who are part of the original foundation, and are educated at Pilgrims’ School. The choir regularly records, broadcasts and tours, under its current director, Howard Ionascu. Chaplaincy to the choir is an important part of the chaplains’ ministry. The Choirs currently sing three choral services a week, as well as once on Sundays, and this aspect is likely to be developed on the arrival of Dónal McCann as Head of Chapel Music and Choral Partnerships in September 2024.
The College Chaplain along with the Dean of Chapel may be asked to advise on matters relating to the parishes for which the College is their patron. Establishing and maintaining strong links and good relations with the diocese of Winchester and Winchester Cathedral is essential. As agreed with the Dean, the College Chaplain may also have a role in liaising with fellow chaplains in the Rugby Group of schools.
Responsible to: The Dean of Chapel, and the Headmaster as Ordinary.
Full details about the school may be found at www.winchestercollege.org.
The successful candidate will be/have:
PART II: BENEFITS, TERMS AND CONDITIONS, AND APPLICATION
Start Date
The post will commence in January 2025, or earlier by mutual agreement.
Salary
Winchester College has its own generous salary scale, which is above the national scale. In addition to salary, the school allocates a Special Responsibility Allowance (SRA) to those with additional roles, which will be negotiated at the appropriate level.
Accommodation
Accommodation is provided within the buildings of the College.
Induction and Continuous Training and Development
The school is fully committed to the induction, training and development of all our staff, with staff supported to grow and reach their full potential. All staff are well supported when they arrive, with help and advice available from Heads of Department, Housemasters, and the Director of Studies, who has specific responsibility for overseeing the induction process.
All members of the Common Room are encouraged to subscribe to external CPD courses. In addition, we deliver a range of training, run by both our own staff and external providers, varying from highly practical First Aid courses to seminars and learning lunches on many aspects of teaching and learning.
There is an annual professional development review offering the opportunity to reflect on professional practice and development opportunities.
Private Health Care and Pension
The successful applicant will be enrolled in the school’s Corporate Health Scheme in accordance with the current rules of the Scheme. Membership of the Scheme does not extend to family members and is a taxable benefit in kind.
A generous pension scheme (either Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) or Defined Contribution (DC) Scheme) and Life Cover (4 times salary) are part of the package.
The successful applicant will be automatically included as a member of the TPS, where both the employee and employer will each meet their statutory contribution rate to the scheme. At Winchester College, where teachers choose to participate in the TPS, the cost to the College of employer pension contributions is capped at 23.68%. From 1 April 2024, employer contributions rose to 28.68%, and the 5% differential is deducted from the employee’s gross salary with effect from this date.
Should the successful applicant opt out of the TPS and elect to join the DC Scheme, there is no corresponding reduction in salary. The default employee and employer contributions are 9% and 21.5% respectively. The DC Scheme offers the flexibility to reduce employee and employer contributions below the default percentage, should the employee wish to, with a minimum contribution of 5% for employee and 5% for employer contributions. Any differential between the employee’s chosen employer contribution and 21.5%, net of additional employer payroll costs, will be paid as non-pensionable salary via salary exchange.
Annual Leave
This is a Teaching position which benefits from the school holidays.
Wider Benefits
Probation, Notice Periods
The first twenty-four months of employment will be a probationary period. Regular reviews with line managers take place over the probationary period with the opportunity to discuss progress, identify any areas for action and ensure that there is appropriate guidance and support in place to enable successful completion of the probationary period.
During the probationary period, the notice required by either party to terminate employment will be one month within the first term of employment. After the first term, the notice required by either party to terminate employment will be one full term.
Once employment is confirmed, the notice period will be one full term.
Disclosure Check
As Winchester College is an educational establishment, a condition of employment will be that the successful candidate must consent to the school obtaining an Enhanced Level Disclosure Check through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). This will reveal all spent and unspent convictions, warnings, cautions and bind-overs. A policy on the recruitment of ex-offenders is available on the school’s website.
Safeguarding is one of the primary responsibilities of this role.
The jobholder is responsible for promoting and safeguarding the welfare of children and young persons for whom they are responsible, or with whom they come into contact with, and will need to adhere to and ensure compliance with the school’s Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy at all times. A College Chaplain should be conversant with the responsibilities and procedures detailed in this policy and with the Department for Education’s Keeping Children Safe in Education. If, in the course of carrying out the duties of the post, the postholder becomes aware of any actual or potential risks to the safety or welfare of children in the school, they must report any concerns to the school’s Designated Safeguarding Lead or in their absence the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead.
References and Other Pre-employment Checks
The appointment will be dependent upon the receipt of a successful medical check and satisfactory references. The College will usually seek references from shortlisted candidates before interview and may approach previous employers for information to verify particular experience or qualifications. At least one referee must be the current or most recent employer. Where applicants are not currently working with children but have done so in the past, one referee must be the person by whom they were most recently employed when working with children.
HOW TO APPLY
Only applications completed on the school website will be accepted. Please attach a full CV with your application and send a covering letter to recruitment@wincoll.ac.uk.
Closing date for applications: Monday 10 June 2024 at 9am.
Please note that applications will be dealt with as they arrive.
Winchester College reserves the right to appoint before the deadline passes.
Interviews are expected to take place during w/c 10 or 17 June 2024.
Those wishing for an informal conversation about this role are invited to speak to the Dean of Chapel, the Headmaster or Second Master, first contacting Rebecca Meads, Senior HR Manager in the HR Department, rm@wincoll.ac.uk.
If you have any questions about this vacancy or the recruitment process, please email recruitment@wincoll.ac.uk.
Data Protection
Winchester College collects and processes relevant personal data as part of its everyday operations and is obliged to process it in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation and Data Act 2018. The school is the Data Controller of this data under the Act and is registered with the Information Commissioner's Office. Its registration number is Z5751669.
If you have any queries or comments about this policy or how personal data is processed by the school, please contact the Bursar and his team by emailing dataprotection@wincoll.ac.uk or by writing to: Data Protection, The Bursary, Winchester College, College Street, Winchester, SO23 9NA.
PART III: ABOUT WINCHESTER COLLEGE
In February 2021, Winchester announced a bold new vision and a significant programme of change. ‘Winchester College in the 21st Century’ describes the School’s ambitions for its future and heralds the start of an exciting new phase in Winchester’s development.
Winchester was a pioneering institution when it was founded in 1382 and this new vision will ensure the School continues to be a leader and influencer of great education on the modern global stage. The commitment to provide an intellectual education of exceptional quality and breadth remains unaltered, as do the values which have underpinned Winchester since its foundation. ‘Winchester College in the 21st Century’ will build on these strengths and bring multiple benefits to current and future generations of Wykehamists.
Winchester currently has over 700 pupils. In September 2022, the College welcomed 40 day pupils, including 17 girls, into the Sixth Form and will continue to do so, over time expanding the entry each year to include girl boarders in due course.
Academically, Winchester is among the very best schools in the country and is sought after for its combination of superb teaching, pastoral care, sports and activities.
At all levels Winchester encourages pupils to look beyond the curriculum. Div is our unique programme of general cultural studies and offers an excellent preparation for university study. In these lessons, pupils engage with a wide range of subjects, from English Literature to Ancient History to the History of Science.
Pupils in the Sixth Form study linear A-level courses and will ordinarily study three A-level subjects and an Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) alongside Div. Linear A-levels are complemented by the flexibility of the EPQ where pupils are able to more deeply explore their cross-curricular research interests. The EPQ encourages pupils to develop first-class research skills, to synthesise information from a variety of differing sources, and to become accustomed to the demands of independent study.
Music has been central to life at Winchester ever since its foundation, and the school is unique in having maintained its Choral Foundation to the present day. The Music Department is now one of the leading departments in the country, and offers outstanding opportunities to all.
Sport is a major part of Winchester life. There are many fixtures against other schools, and in 2024 the redevelopment of the sports facilities will see a state-of-the-art complex open that will allow all pupils to enjoy and participate in a variety of sports, whilst simultaneously enabling the most talented and driven pupils to train and compete at the highest level.
Much energy is also invested in the Combined Cadet Force, the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme, Community Service, and in links with local primary and secondary maintained schools. This commitment provides pupils with many opportunities to work for the benefit of others, inside and outside the classroom, developing the knowledge and skills, and the rights and responsibilities, which will enable them to grow into valuable and productive members of society.
Pupils eat all meals in their boarding houses, talking with their Housemaster, and interacting with friends, visitors and teachers. We believe that conversational ability, developed both inside and outside the community, equips pupils to talk to anyone, about anything, in practically any situation.
This unparalleled combination attracts pupils from across the world, making Winchester a truly international and diverse community which celebrates every pupil’s individuality, passions and potential.
Winchester College is committed to maintaining the founder’s original intention of offering an outstanding education to any pupil who would benefit from it, regardless of their financial circumstances, and many of the pupils in the College are being helped financially through the school with substantial bursaries.
Diversity and Inclusion
Winchester College is a truly international community that celebrates everyone’s individuality, talents and potential and offers regular training and career development opportunities. We embrace diversity and inclusion in the workplace and are committed to promoting a fair and supportive environment for all our employees. We work hard to create a culture where different perspectives are valued and our staff feel valued for their individuality, and share a sense of belonging. Our aim is to reflect the diverse nature of society and of our pupil body.
Sustainability
Both staff and pupils at Winchester College are committed to being the most sustainable school possible. You can learn more about our goal of creating a more sustainable school here.
