Updated to add link to appointment brief.
The Church of England is recruiting an “Executive Chair, Safeguarding Structures Programme Board”. The advert is copied below, and there are further details in this Appointment Brief. The advert refers to a paper (GS2378) but does not include a link. Those interested can find it here.
Executive Chair, Safeguarding Structures Programme Board
Location: UK
Recruiter: National Church Institutions
In February 2025, the Church of England’s legislative body, General Synod, voted on a motion brought by the Lead Bishop for Safeguarding on future structures for safeguarding in the Church of England. The motion was based on this paper (GS2378) which outlined the proposals. This work was the culmination of a response by the Church of England to two reports published in 2024 about safeguarding structures and operations. The General Synod motion, as amended, sets the direction of travel for safeguarding structures and operations in the future.
The Lead Bishop for Safeguarding Structures and her team are in the process of constituting a Programme Board, which will oversee two Project Boards delivering major workstreams. The day-to-day operation of delivering the work that General Synod has commissioned is the responsibility of the Safeguarding Structures Team. This team will support the Programme Board and Project Boards. The Executive Chair of the Programme Board will provide hands-on strategic leadership to ensure the successful delivery of the Safeguarding Structures programme.
The successful candidate will bring senior leadership experience from a public sector (Government or equivalent) organisation which delivers safeguarding, along with proven experience of planning and delivering large-scale, complex, organisational change and of chairing or leading governance bodies within complex programmes. With exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, they will be able to build and maintain effective relationships with a wide range of stakeholders and deal with intense media scrutiny. They will also have a commitment to transparency and accountability, and sympathy with the ethos, mission and work of the Church of England.
Saxton Bampfylde Ltd is acting as an employment agency advisor to the National Church Institutions on this appointment.
For further information about the role, including details about how to apply, please visit www.saxbam.com/appointments using reference FBUCA. Alternatively email Belinda.beck@saxbam.com. Applications should be received by midday on 13th June 2025.
Well SaxBam are well known and respected as one of the Rolls Royce of recruitment agencies, so I hope they can bring some substance, glitter and sparkle to this vital appointment.
The plan is for this person to work only 8-10 days per month, i.e. less than half-time. I would like to hear the reasons why this is thought to be the right way to proceed.
I think that this is the point at which I totally give up on the Church of England – X North has released a genie from its bottle which ensures that Safeguarding can continue as business as usual into perpetuity and no one will ever be safe in the C of E apart from those at the top of the AC 1)No money for settlements for victims and survivors but loads of it for Rolls Royce recruitment agencies. 2)A very part time appointment (probably not on very part time pay but I haven’t checked this ) to ensure that getting… Read more »
And all this is the fault of who you refer to as X .North?
Possibly Susanna is referring to +Philip North, whose speech in last July’s General Synod was largely credited with Synod failing to approve independent safeguarding.
That would be very normal, and indeed considered be best practice, for a non-executive chair. The assumption would be that a non-executive director, which would normally include a chair, would either be working for several organisations, or would be semi-retired and bringing wide experience. In both cases a lot of value comes from the regular “hang on, this isn’t normal” or “what we did elsewhere was” interventions. In the finance sector the regulator regards a good set of them as vital oversee the operation of the board. The regulator has to interview them as part of their approval, and they… Read more »