Mental Health Hospital Chaplain

An imaginative, caring chaplain: A creative enabler for spirituality, confidence and hope?

Location: Northampton 

Salary: Up to £37,000 depending on skills / experience 

Hours – Full Time 37.5 hours 

We are St Andrew’s. We are a thriving charity, and our vision is a society in which everyone living with mental health need is heard, valued and has hope for their future.

We help people to overcome barriers, and we work tirelessly to help people in our care to find hope.

Are you full of curiosity and ideas? Are you inspired to do the right thing every day, living by our CARE values of Compassion, Accountability, Respect and Excellence?

Then come join us. Let’s transform lives together. 

We have a vacancy for a Spiritual Wellbeing Chaplain, based in Northampton.

Our Spiritual Wellbeing Chaplain appointment is an opportunity for an experienced Chaplain:

• to work alongside engaging patients and a diverse team, in developing spirituality within mental healthcare
• to be a significant part of our specialist mental health chaplaincy
• to grow chaplaincy skills.

The Charity

St Andrew’s Healthcare is a charity providing specialist mental healthcare services with sites in Northampton (our largest hospital), and Birmingham and Basildon.  We work in partnership with a number of NHS, voluntary, educational and research organisations to deliver a range of specialist inpatient and community mental healthcare services, education and research that helps to improve the lives of people with complex mental health needs.

Our Chaplaincy Team

For over 160 years, Spirituality and Faith have played a key role in St Andrews patient care. Our existing Spiritual Wellbeing Chaplaincy team consists of full and part-time staff, volunteers and contractors who bring spirituality into action in supporting recovery and wholeness. As a team we believe in the power of spirituality and faith to combine with diverse lived experience. We are creating new avenues of Chaplaincy as the Mental Healthcare Context changes.

The Role

The post-holder will provide spiritual wellbeing patient care, in collaboration with our clinical teams. With other chaplains, you will share in the care of our 450 in-patients in Northampton. Most patients have been detained under the Mental Health Act. You will work alongside ward staff, and also have a care for them. You will be part of the Northampton Spiritual Wellbeing Chaplaincy Team, as well as the Full Team across all sites. Occasional visits to other sites may be required.

You will receive support from the Head of Spiritual Wellbeing Chaplaincy and colleagues.

About You

To be successful in applying for this post, you will have Chaplaincy Team experience and an appreciation of Spirituality and Faith’s diverse contribution to mental wellbeing. Educated to graduate level (or equivalent) you have recognised training / experience in Chaplaincy; and accreditation / ’in good standing’ from your host faith/belief community.

• You enjoy working with different healthcare disciplines. You appreciate the benefits of diverse spiritualities. You can support people at times of death and bereavement.
• You can demonstrate that you can listen well and enable appropriate reflection on the spiritual and existential issues of illness and disability.
• You are comfortable delivering appropriate religious rites and prayers in a home / hospital environment.
• You have wide knowledge of faith / spiritual communities in the local area.
• You can deliver good support and management to volunteers
• You are eager to examine you own practise, receive feedback and provide positive criticism in a team setting. You are happy offer skills and initiatives and can act strategically.
• You have integrity and will be sympathetic to the overall aims of the Charity. You are prepared to follow the values and expectations of the UK Board of Healthcare Chaplaincy (ukbhc.org.uk).
• You are well organised, can manage administration, enjoy autonomy and some flexibility. You are available for regular weekend work (eg one day every three weeks) and some public holiday working. Out of hours duty may very occasionally be required. You are able to manage some self-care.

Rewards

We offer an excellent benefits package including: Pension; Sickness policy on par with the NHS; Access to the Blue Light Card and Health Service Discounts schemes; 35 days annual leave (including bank holidays), increasing to 41 after 10 years' service; Life cover; Electric Car lease scheme; Cycle to work scheme; Healthcare cash plan; Free parking; Paid DBS application; Access to free vocational qualifications; On-site facilities such as gym and swimming pool access and cafés all set within beautiful grounds.

Next Steps

You will report to the Head of Chaplaincy and Spiritual Care, Peter Sellick, and will receive full support and supervision. If you would like to speak to him informally about this opportunity you can contact him on 01604 616413 / 07790 891524 and pjsellick@stah.org.  

In order to apply, and view the job description and person specification please contact pjsellick@stah.org or our Recruitment Team at recruitment@stah.org.

Closing Date: Monday 26th August 

Interviews on: Tuesday 17th September