PART I: ABOUT THE CHAPLAINCY
The Chaplaincy
Winchester College seeks a Chapel Verger to start as soon as possible. The successful candidate will demonstrate pastoral commitment and must have the passion and faith to support ministering to a boarding and day community of 800 pupils. The Chaplaincy team currently comprises the Dean of Chapel, a College Curate, and a Senior Lay Chaplain; and it hopes to appoint a further ordained chaplain in due course.
The Chaplaincy of the school plays a key role in promoting the spiritual wellbeing of all pupils. Services regularly take place in the College Chapel, in St Michael’s Church, and in Chantry. Each pupil makes a commitment to one Sunday service and one weekday service each week 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 the College Curate. There are 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 of other faiths, meets every Sunday. Several other spaces are adaptable for religious worship, including School and New Hall.
There is a strong tradition of choral music at the College, with past organists including Thomas Weelkes, Jeremiah Clarke and SS 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. Chaplaincy to the choir is an important part of the chaplains’ ministry.
Reporting to: College Dean of Chapel.
PART II: ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE CHAPEL VERGER
Overall Responsibilities
The Chapel Verger will be responsible for supporting the Chaplains in carrying out their liturgical functions in the chapel, which will include assisting with the delivery of the practical arrangements for services.
There is a range of tasks on different days, and the Dean of Chapel will be happy to talk to candidates about the hours/days they can offer. Priority tasks (in term-time only) are:
PART III: PERSON SPECIFICATION AND KEY QUALITIES
The successful candidate will be a cheerful and friendly person who enjoys working in a small, committed team, and have:
PART IV: BENEFITS, TERMS AND CONDITIONS, AND APPLICATION
Start date
As soon as possible.
Hours of Work
This is a zero hours position. The Dean of Chapel will be happy to talk to candidates about the hours/days they can offer. It is understood that candidates may not be able to commit to all the occasions which the College would ideally like covered. Please contact the Dean of Chapel for further information.
Expected maximum hours during term: Approx. 11 hrs
Expected maximum during holidays: 2 hrs
The Winchester College term dates are available on the school’s website.
Salary
The hourly rate is £15.00, including statutory holiday pay. Pay levels are reviewed in September annually; the next review for this post will be 1 September 2023. As this is a zero hours position, the postholder will be offered work when it is available; the amount of work offered may vary. The College is under no obligation to provide work. Hours worked are recorded on a monthly timesheet. The postholder’s pay will be paid monthly in arrears to their nominated bank or building society account.
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.
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.
There is an annual cycle of appraisal offering the opportunity to reflect on professional practice and development opportunities.
The school also offers a wide range of apprenticeships supporting staff development and progression.
Pension and Life Cover
On employment, employees will be auto-enrolled into the College’s pension scheme according to legislative thresholds. Those who are not eligible for auto-enrolment may still elect to join the College’s pension scheme.
Initially, when joining the College’s pension scheme, employees will become a member of the College’s Group Personal Pension Plan (GPP). For this Plan, known as Tier 1, the employee contributes 4% and the employer 3%.
After 9 month’s membership of the Tier 1 plan, employees may opt to join Tier 2, which is also a GPP, where the employee contributes 5% and the employer 9%.
Employees in Tier 1 automatically qualify for a Life Cover of 2 times salary. On entry to Tier 2, Life Cover changes to 4 times salary.
Holiday
The College holiday year runs from 1 September to 31 August each year. This position will be entitled to the statutory holiday entitlement. These are presently 5.6 weeks per year (inclusive of public holidays). Any Public Bank Holiday occurring during term time is deemed to be a normal working day.
Holiday must be taken at times specified by the College which will be during the Christmas, Easter and summer School holiday periods. The postholder’s holiday pay will be paid to them at the point at which they take their leave as follows:
The postholder’s holiday pay will be calculated based on their average weekly remuneration.
Sports Facilities
The school offers all staff free access to its excellent sports facilities, including gym membership, tennis courts and in 2023, a new 25m swimming pool. Exercise classes, including spinning and circuits are also available.
Wider Benefits
Winchester College is situated in the heart of beautiful, historic Winchester. Staff are offered a free tour of the College, with discounted rates available for booking venues within the school’s grounds for hospitality events. On-site car-parking is available and free staff lunches are offered daily during term-time.
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. 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
If you have any questions about this vacancy or the recruitment process, please email recruitment@wincoll.ac.uk .
Full details about the school may be found
at www.winchestercollege.org
Those wishing for an informal conversation about this role are invited to speak to Revd Dr Hester Jones, Dean of Chapel. This can be arranged by Philippa McComb, Headmaster’s Secretary via pcm@wincoll.ac.uk or 01962 621391.
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 Data Protection 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.
Any queries about this policy or how personal data is processed by the school should be referred to the Data Protection Liaison Officer.