On the night of 14th November, 1940, Coventry and its Cathedral endured a relentless bombing campaign. Overnight, the ‘Moonlight Sonata’ offensive destroyed much of central Coventry, hundreds of its people and left its Cathedral in ruins. Only the outer shell of the walls and the tower remained standing. The city and Cathedral thus share a history of conflict just as, today, they share a determination to build justice and peace, by healing wounds and learning to live with difference.

Coventry Cathedral is one of the world’s oldest religious-based centres for reconciliation, and its work in recent decades has involved it in some of the world’s most difficult and long-standing areas of conflict. Today, its medieval ruins continue to remind its visitors of the human capacity both to destroy and to reach out to enemies in friendship and reconciliation. From charred remains to “bopping angels” (to quote Archbishop Justin Welby), the Ruins and the new Cathedral, with its chapels and use of perspective and light, make possible numerous journeys of transformation from darkness to light, assisted by the insights offered by the many permanent artworks.

Coventry Cathedral exists to reconcile the world to God and one another. Its vision is to be a reconciling Cathedral – welcoming, worshipping and bringing people together. It's a place where everyone can find hope and share hope.

The Cathedral has recently identified its priorities to deliver its purpose and vision over the upcoming years, these include growing the Cathedral congregations, confirming the Cathedral as the spiritual heart of the city and Diocese as well as a major regional venue for art and events, securing the Cathedral as a tourist attraction, place of pilgrimage and of learning, and finally inspiring and supporting the work of reconciliation, locally, nationally and internationally. The priorities of the Cathedral will be enabled through well maintained campus and buildings, committed people, effective communications and a sustainable financial base.

The Cathedral is not legally a charity, but is in the process of becoming one by 2023 and operates on similar principles. The Chapter is the equivalent of a Board of Trustees for the Cathedral. It is the administrative body of the Cathedral and has the ultimate responsibility for directing and overseeing its affairs.  The Chapter is responsible for the governance, strategy and management of the Cathedral’s financial and other assets.

The Chapter consists of the Dean, the Residentiary Canons and other ordained and lay members holding appointed or elected positions. Its other members are drawn from a variety of organisations, its duty is to further and support the work of this Cathedral Church in delivering its vision in accordance with its values. Chapter Members bring a broader perspective and fresh awareness to the deliberations of their executive colleagues who work at the Cathedral every day.

As a Chapter Member, the successful candidate would work collaboratively with other members and colleagues to:

• Provide effective leadership to enable the Cathedral to achieve its mission
• Ensure that the Cathedral complies with its governing documents underpinned by the principles of good governance
• Participate in analysing any risks to the Cathedral and ensuring they are appropriately mitigated
• Ensure the Cathedral’s financial stability, overseeing the integrity of financial information and ensuring that financial controls and management are appropriate and robust
• Actively commit to Chapter’s role in setting overall policy, defining goals, evaluating performance and driving improvement

As Coventry Cathedral plans to become a full charity in 2023, it is looking for an experienced Vice-Chair to join the Chapter. The ideal candidate for the role will have prior experience of working within either public, commercial, regulatory, or charitable sectors at senior-level, and would be able to assist the cathedral in strategising and increasing its presence and income as a visitor attraction. Commercial aptitude will help in understanding the complex workings of a cathedral and its associated functions.

Candidates should also be able to demonstrate their experience of navigating issues relating to charity governance, having previously sat on a Trustee board or ideally chaired a board of an organisation.

Applications are particularly encouraged from individuals who are communicant members of the Church of England and those located within the Diocese of Coventry. The successful candidate should be sympathetic to the values of the Church of England and understand the ethos of the Cathedral.

There are up to 12 members of Chapter. The Dean (Chair) and the residentiary Canons are the executive members. The non-executive members make up the majority with two being elected from the Cathedral electoral roll (essentially the congregation) and others being appointed via the nominations Committee by the Bishop for the skills they bring.

There is a specific appointment to Chapter of the Chair of the Finance Committee who has expertise in financial matters and also an individual with expertise in property matters.

The role is unremunerated, however pre-agreed domestic travel expenses can be reimbursed. The Chapter usually meets one morning per month for 10 or 11 months of the year (with no meeting in August) in the last week of each month, generally on a Tuesday morning. Chapter meetings are held in St Michael’s House beside the Cathedral and generally last between two and three hours. The successful candidate will also be expected to engage with the Cathedral on an ad hoc basis to ensure their understanding of current issues.

The Cathedral is located in Coventry, as such applicants will ideally be based near Coventry or otherwise have a personal connection to the city or Cathedral.