VACANCIES

Job title: Kids Pastor

Department: Rising Generations

Reports to: Senior Leaders

Principal location: River Church Ipswich, Key Street, IP4 1BZ

DBS check required: Yes

Special conditions of employment: There is a genuine occupational requirement that the post-holder is a Christian, as permitted under the Equality Act 2010.

Start date: As soon as possible

Working days/hours: Full-time

Rate of pay: Up to £24,375

Travel: May be required on occasion

Holiday: 25 days per annum plus bank holidays (pro rata)

Probation period: 6 months

Contract length: Negotiable

Other expectations: Whilst the role will usually be Sunday to Thursday, the role holder will need to be available to work some other key dates, such as special services (Christmas, Easter etc.), annual meetings, and Focus (our annual one-week church holiday in the summer). It is expected that staff members will be active members of River Church—praying at prayer meetings, serving on team, giving financially, and growing as part of a Hangout.

● Oversee River Church’s mission and ministry to Kids (0-11s) and their families, leading significant growth in number and depth of discipleship

● Lead, pastor, co-ordinate, train, and grow the River Kids Team

● Oversee, plan and lead kids-focussed aspects of Sunday services, working to expand capacity and grow numbers of children and families involved

● Plan and lead midweek groups, activities, courses, and events aimed at children and families, such as Baby Love (our group for parents, babies, and toddlers), the Parenting Course, and other future groups (including a new service for kids and families)

● Lead kids ministry within local primary schools and nurseries, such as taking assemblies, leading after-school or lunch clubs, RE lessons and similar activities, as opportunities arise, building on existing contacts and developing new partnerships

● Make contact and build relationships with unchurched and de-churched kids and families in Ipswich, and lead them on a pathway of discipleship, equipping the Kids Team to do the same

● Inviting parents and carers to Alpha and creating opportunities to run Alphas suitable for this demographic (i.e., through providing childcare or at strategic times and locations)

● Collaborate with the Social Transformation department where their work serves children and young families, to build their connection with River Church

● Train, mentor, and prepare members of the Kids Team to ensure the provision of excellent kids worship, mission, and ministry, and to release team members into leadership where appropriate

● Work with Senior Leaders and other ministry staff to plan events, meetings, and services

● Manage the kids department budget

● Manage and mentor Kids Team River College Students (interns), releasing them into appropriate levels of leadership

● Lead and contribute to Alpha, Staff Meeting, Department Meetings, Prayer Meeting, Hangouts, Focus, and Sunday Services (including some preaching and/or teaching)

● Collaborate with the Communications and Media Manager to curate River Kids social media channels

● Work with the Student Pastor to assist in River Church’s ministry to young people (11-18), and to ensure a smooth transition from River Kids to River Youth

● Ensure that kids team volunteers are recruited safely, following the safer recruitment policy, and that all regulatory requirements regarding safeguarding and health and safety are met, attending training as required

● Manage DBS checks and safeguarding training across River Church, working closely with the Safeguarding Officer

● Ad hoc tasks and other project work which enhances the ministry and mission of River Church

Personal qualities and beliefs

It is essential that the role holder:

● has a mature, personal faith in and relationship with God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit

● believes and embodies the orthodox Christian teaching revealed in the Bible and attested to by the historic formularies of the Church of England

● is committed to the dream, purpose, and goals of River Church, and passionate about seeing people coming to know Jesus in Ipswich

● has a passion for reaching children with the gospel and to seeing them grow into all that God has created them to be in Christ

● has the capacity to provide spiritual leadership within the kids team and to contribute to the spiritual direction of the wider church

● is theologically astute

Personal skills and abilities

It is essential that the role holder:

● has the ability to teach, train and develop kids team volunteers

● has excellent teamwork and team-building skills, and is able to manage, motivate, and encourage others

● has excellent organisational skills and time management

● is self-motivated

● has excellent interpersonal skills, and the ability to connect with children

● has outstanding communication skills, both written and verbal

● has a high attention to detail and high production values

● is able to manage a departmental budget

● is flexible, with a can-do attitude

● is teachable, has a desire to learn and grow, and is willing to undergo any necessary training

● understands the importance of confidentiality and has good self-awareness

● has enthusiasm, energy, commitment, and a sense of humour

Knowledge, qualifications, and experience

It is essential that the role holder:

● has experience in leading services, prayer, and worship for kids

● has outstanding ability to communicate Christian teaching to kids

● has confidence ministering in the Holy Spirit

● has a thorough understanding of statutory Child Protection/Safeguarding requirements

It is desirable that the role holder:

● has relevant degree-level qualifications connected to children, education, and/or theology

● is experienced in and/or has the ability to learn to use Mac OS X, Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and ChurchSuite

● has an eye for design and aesthetics

● is able to use digital technology and social media to contribute to kids ministry

● is able to preach to and teach adults, as well as children

● has other skills which could contribute to the wider life and ministry of River Church

We particularly welcome applications from candidates whose ethnicities are underrepresented in the Church of England. We would welcome informal conversations with anybody considering applying for this position. Email matt.key@riverchurchipswich.org to get in touch. When completing the application form, please feel free to continue your answers on separate pages if you require more room.

There is no specified closing date for applications for this role. We reserve the right to close applications and/or shortlist at any time. As such, we recommend applying for this role at your earliest convenience.

We will inform you as to whether or not you will be invited for interview within 5 full working days of applications closing.

Interviews will be held in person at River Church Ipswich, Key Street, IP4 1BZ.

Please bring your passport (and, if necessary, proof of right to work in the UK) and a document showing proof of your home address, such as a utility bill or bank statement, to your interview.

Please note that any offers made are subject to: the receipt of satisfactory references; satisfactory completion of a DBS check, safeguarding training, and any other training necessary for the role; proof of right to work in the UK; satisfactory completion of a 6 month probationary period; and agreement to adhere to the policies and procedures of River Church.

When you apply for this role, please also complete the Equality and Diversity Monitoring Form at the bottom of this page.

Job title: Crosslight Centre Manager

Department: Social Transformation

Reports to: TBC

Principal location: River Church Ipswich, Key Street, IP4 1BZ

DBS check required: Yes

Special conditions of employment: There is a genuine occupational requirement that the post-holder is a Christian, as permitted under the Equality Act 2010.

Start date: As soon as possible

Working days/hours: 16 hours per week

Rate of pay: Up to £24,375 pro rata

Travel: May be required on occasion

Holiday: 25 days per annum plus bank holidays (pro rata)

Probation period: 6 months

Contract length: Negotiable

Other expectations: The role holder will need to be available to work some other key dates, such as special services (Christmas, Easter etc.), annual meetings, and Focus (our annual one-week church holiday in the summer). It is expected that staff members will be active members of River Church—attending Sunday services, praying at prayer meetings, serving on a team, giving financially, and growing as part of a Hangout.

● Work with Senior Leaders and staff team to launch, establish and effectively run Crosslight Advice Ipswich, in line with the dream, purpose, and goals of River Church

Centre Management

● Act as Line Manager for the branch staff team and volunteers and ensure their wellbeing, ensuring appropriate supervision of team members, including provision of expert advice & guidance to advisers and case managers, overseeing advice quality, undertaking team evaluation & appraisals

● Support the recruitment and development of new volunteers, and work to identify and plan for their ongoing training and development needs of the team, and particularly the progression of advisers from trainee, to qualified Adviser, to Case Manager and beyond

Service Provision

● Oversee client appointment sessions and team schedules

● Oversee appointment locations including room set-up / infrastructure for appointments

● Manage service capacity within the branch, working towards meeting branch targets whilst protecting against over-stretch

● Implement appropriate budgeting and money management education

● Signpost service users towards other relevant activities within and outside River Church

External Relations

● Maintaining an effective and proactive relationship with local stakeholders within the branch catchment area

● Working with the Crosslight Engagement Lead, to promote the work of Crosslight and the branch to clients, referrers, the local community and funders, including collecting and collating impactful client case studies, social media, and local events management

● Working with Crosslight to develop the strategic direction of the branch

● Supporting the wider Crosslight family and other Branch Managers in a collaborative way to implement best practice and further the interests of Crosslight and its clients

● Ensuring the highest standards of team welfare, and leading for the branch on safeguarding our clients

● Assisting the church with fundraising in respect of the work of Crosslight

Personal qualities and beliefs

It is essential that the role holder:

● has a mature, personal faith in and relationship with God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit

● believes and embodies the orthodox Christian teaching revealed in the Bible and attested to by the historic formularies of the Church of England

● is demonstrably committed to their own discipleship (i.e., praying, serving, giving, and sharing faith) and is intentionally discipling others as followers of Jesus

● is committed to the dream, purpose, and goals of River Church

● is passionate about social transformation

Personal skills and abilities

It is essential that the role holder:

● has good teamwork and team-building skills, and is able to lead, manage, motivate, and encourage others

● has good administrative and organisational skills and time management, and the ability to prioritise workloads.

● is highly self-motivated with the ability to take initiative and put ideas into practice, and start new projects

● has excellent communication and interpersonal skills, both written and verbal, including an excellent level of English spelling, punctuation, and grammar, and a sense of professionalism and competence

● has the ability to teach, train and develop leaders and volunteers in the Love Ipswich team

● has a high emotional intelligence, high attention to detail, and high production values

● is creative and flexible, with a can-do attitude and

● is teachable and has a desire to learn and grow

● understands the importance of confidentiality and has good self-awareness

● has enthusiasm, energy, commitment, and a sense of humour

Knowledge, qualifications, and experience

It is essential that the role holder:

● has good IT skills, and experience in and/or the ability to learn to use Mac OS X, Pages, Numbers, Keynote, ChurchSuite, and Expense Plus, as well as Microsoft Word, Outlook, Excel, and Powerpoint

● has a good and up-to-date understanding of statutory child protection and safeguarding requirements, health and safety legislation, and other legal aspects related to the running of Crosslight

It is desirable that the role holder:

● has an excellent understanding of finance, debt, and money management

● has prior experience delivering training

● has relevant qualifications

● has other relevant experience or skills related to the role, or other areas of ministry and church life

We particularly welcome applications from candidates whose ethnicities are underrepresented in the Church of England. We would welcome informal conversations with anybody considering applying for this position. Email matt.key@riverchurchipswich.org to get in touch. When completing the application form, please feel free to continue your answers on separate pages if you require more room.

There is no specified closing date for applications for this role. We reserve the right to close applications and/or shortlist at any time. As such, we recommend applying for this role at your earliest convenience.

We will inform you as to whether or not you will be invited for interview within 5 full working days of applications closing.

Interviews will be held in person at River Church Ipswich, Key Street, IP4 1BZ.

Please bring your passport (and, if necessary, proof of right to work in the UK) and a document showing proof of your home address, such as a utility bill or bank statement, to your interview.

Please note that any offers made are subject to: the receipt of satisfactory references; satisfactory completion of a DBS check, safeguarding training, and any other training necessary for the role; proof of right to work in the UK; satisfactory completion of a 6 month probationary period; and agreement to adhere to the policies and procedures of River Church.

When you apply for this role, please also complete the Equality and Diversity Monitoring Form at the bottom of this page.