Team Chaplain (Church of England)

Job responsibilities

1. Be a person of integrity within their own faith/belief/spirituality tradition. If planning to practice as part of their belief or spirituality tradition, to be able to provide endorsement of their capacity to practice.

2. Be a person committed to personal reflection and continued learning in their faith/belief/spirituality tradition and field of work.

3. Be an informed, visible, and active presence in the hospital, visiting patients and staff in wards and departments frequently; ensuring that the spiritual/existential, pastoral, religious and/or ritual needs of all patients, staff and relatives are met through a person-centred framework.

4. Be readily available to relatives and patients, particularly those who are bereaved or struggling with diagnosis, and those who are close to the end of life, to ensure that sensitive, efficient, and appropriate spiritual care is always given.

5. Ensure that suitable religious or non-religious services, rites, and ceremonies (e.g., naming ceremonies, baptism/dedication of extremely ill babies, washing of deceased patients, administering sacraments) are made available to all who require them, at any stage of life, without discrimination and in consultation with ward staff and the patients belief community as appropriate.

6. To facilitate, when requested, visits to patients by representatives of their own belief tradition/s.

7. To work with the maternity and neonatal teams to offer support to parents and families experiencing baby loss at any stage of gestation, or the care of extremely ill babies.

8. Plan, organise, and conduct adult contract funerals, baby funerals (at any stage of gestation), as well as thanksgiving, memorial, and other services as required, always respecting the belief tradition and needs of others, in a manner authentic to the Chaplain.

9. Plan, organise and conduct services of worship or spaces that hold non-religious significance, in accordance with their own belief tradition.

10.Ensure that the multi-faith/belief chapel and waiting areas are properly maintained and accessible to all.

11. Autonomously and diligently offer general and specific encouragement to staff, offering time and space for supportive listening and counsel when sought.

12. Autonomously contribute to education programs within the Trust to enhance understanding of spiritual, existential, cultural, and religious/ritual needs of patients and staff.

13.Identify opportunities to collaboratively improve the Chaplaincy service to provide the best patient and staff care within the resources available.

14.Work with the rest of the Chaplaincy team in a spirit of unity, as well as the wider Trust to make the hospital a place of equality for people of all faiths, beliefs, spiritualities and none.

15.To be a part of the Chaplaincy response within the Trusts major incident plans and response.

To ensure that Chaplaincy volunteers are trained and supervised the team Chaplain will be required to assist, facilitate, or take a lead in:

16.Supervising and supporting members of the Chaplaincy Pastoral Volunteer team and in appointing and training prospective members.

17.Helping to facilitate training, teaching and reflective practice sessions as required. To ensure safety, accountability and continuity of care, the team Chaplain will be required to:

18.Keep adequate records of all services and activity, in order to contribute to the evaluation and audit of the work of the Chaplaincy team as a whole.

19.Participate in the 24/7 emergency on-call rota to provide Chaplaincy support to any who require it. When on-call, the Chaplain must be able to be able to respond to calls, which includes being onsite on site and telephone advice. When a request relates to another religion or belief group the on-call Chaplain will seek to access appropriate support from the list of available support within the Chaplaincy office.

20.Participate in the Chaplaincy rota, which includes weekend working and on-call.

21.Be subject to annual Appraisal by the Lead Chaplain.

22.Undertake regular measurement, data collection and evaluation of Chaplaincy work and current practices using evidence-based practice projects, audit, and outcome measures, either individually or with the team.

23.Work within the current NHS Chaplaincy Guidelines, UKBHC Code of Conduct and any other relevant policy or guidance from Public Health England, and NHS and United Kingdom Board of Healthcare Chaplaincy.

24.Have awareness of current development within the field of healthcare Chaplaincy, the NHS and local healthcare.

25.Be a fully participant member of the Chaplaincy team, making a priority of team meetings and reflective practice, and seeking to maintain high morale and sound team relationships.

26. Monitoring ones own quality of practice as appropriate and engage in continuing professional development.

27.Receive regular pastoral supervision from an approved supervisor to reflect on practice (self-sought/provided).

28.Be responsible for ones own spiritual development and the maintenance of a healthy work/life balance.

29.Undertake any other tasks as required by the Team Leader in accordance with the grade and nature of the post, as required.

30.Deputise for the Team Leader as required.

31.Participate in providing short term cover for colleagues during periods of annual leave or sickness.

Special Requirements

Chaplains, representative of specific religions or belief viewpoints, are appointed to reflect the belief and cultural demography of the George Eliot patient and staff community. Each Chaplain has responsibility for ensuring that the spiritual and religious needs of people of their own religious/belief tradition are met, while equally, also having a duty of care to people of any or no religion.

Non-Catholic/Church of England/Free Church Christian Chaplain: Special responsibilities

1. Organise, publicise, prepare, and preside (or arrange presidency) at services of Holy Communion/ecumenical services in the hospital; and find ways to provide prayer or meditation possibilities through the week, to ensure that the spiritual and pastoral needs of all patients and staff are met.

2. Be a point of reference for members of local churches, parishes, and individuals, to enable sensitive, efficient and appropriate care to be given at all times.

3. Work with the Lead Chaplain to maintain a list of local Christian representatives who are willing and able to be contacted for support or advice for Christian patients when the Christian Chaplain is not available, in accordance with all criteria for volunteers within the Trust.

For a full comprehensive list of main responsibilities and duties, please kindly refer to job description and personal specification attached.

Qualifications & Professional Training

Essential

• Eligible to be authorise by appropriate faith or belief group to practice as a Healthcare Chaplain if practising from a particular world view.
• To have a nationally recognised qualification pertinent to the job and degree standard or equivalent
• To have, or be willing to work towards full registration with the UK Board of Healthcare Chaplains

Desirable

• Postgraduate certificate in healthcare chaplaincy
• Special interest area/research

Experience and Knowledge

Essential

• To have a minimum of 3 years' experience in pastoral, spiritual and religious care, including expertise in complex and emotionally distressing situations.
• Demonstrable inter-faith and ecumenical experience
• Evidence of continuing professional development
• An understanding of the differences between religious, spiritual, existential, and pastoral care
• Experience of working in a health care environment

Desirable

• Experience of working in a health care environment
• Experience of the management of volunteers

Skills & Abilities

Essential

• Ability to listen
• Able to express self clearly and communicate thoughts and ideas, in written and spoken form
• Proven skills in planning and organisation; ability to reach deadlines
• To have or be willing to gain skills and knowledge in areas of counselling and reflective listening
• Ability to reflect theologically/thoroughly on health and wellbeing, sickness, suffering, loss and bereavement, in the context of healthcare
• Ability to demonstrate the Band 6 Capabilities and Competencies from the UKBHC (2020)
• Computer Literate

Personal Qualities

Essential

• A team player with a highly developed sense of collegiate responsibility
• Emotional resilience as well as an ability to recognise one's personal limits and needs for support
• An ability to respond intuitively within pastoral situations
• Willingness to receive supervision
• Ability to form positive working relationships with multi-professional colleagues
• An ease in the delivery of spiritual/existential, pastoral, religious care
• Ability to stay calm in a stressful, emotive environments
• Friendly and approachable; non-judgmental, and respectful to all
• Respectful verbal and written communication

Desirable

• A robust sense of humour

Other

Essential

• Own transport

Values

Essential

• Effective open communication
• EXcellence and safety in everything we do
• Challenge but support
• Expect respect and dignity
• Local healthcare that inspires confidence

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).