Lichfield Cathedral is the only medieval three-spired Cathedral in the UK, and is a treasured landmark in the heart of England. It is one of the oldest places of Christian worship, and the burial place of the great Anglo-Saxon missionary Bishop, St Chad. As the Mother Church of the Diocese of Lichfield and the seat of the Bishop of Lichfield, this site has been a place of worship and learning for around 1300 years, and it continues in that tradition to this day.

Lichfield is among the earliest centres of Christian worship in the UK and the Diocese of Lichfield is one of the largest in the Church of England serving just over two-million-people in 1,744 square miles. The Lichfield Diocese is the Church of England in the North West Midlands. This magnificent building has a rich history, reflected in its architecture and treasures. Click here to understand more about the fascinating history of the Cathedral.

As a place of great beauty, it continues to inspire and encourage all who visit it as tourists, pilgrims or worshippers. In addition to daily services, the Cathedral also acts as a stunning venue for a range of events including concerts, gala dinners, festivals, awards ceremonies, performances, debates, educational forums and more.  It also works with schools, educational institutions and groups to develop learning outcomes. 

The Cathedral has attempted to widen its audience through hosting all kinds of festivals from arts to food, by commissioning innovative and participative art and education programmes, and by making a determined attempt to make explicit the building’s fundamental role through commissioning new works of liturgical art and giving the building a more intense sense of perspective and spaciousness with a tailor-made lighting scheme. 

All its initiatives have been well-received and well-supported by national bodies. As part of its plan for this year, it plans on constructing a new shrine and starting the groundwork for a new visitor centre. It is also making great efforts in developing support facilities for young people's mental health. 

The Cathedral is not legally a charity, but is in the process of becoming one by early 2023 and operates on similar principles. Lichfield Cathedral seeks up to three new members for its Finance Committee in order to bring broader financial perspective and fresh awareness to the deliberations of their executive colleagues who work at the Cathedral every day.

As Finance Committee members, the successful candidates would work collaboratively with other Committee Members and executive colleagues to provide effective financial guidance and oversight to enable the Cathedral to achieve its mission. They will ensure that the Cathedral complies with its governing documents underpinned by the principles of good governance and will participate in analysing any financial risks to the Cathedral and ensuring they are appropriately mitigated.

The members will bring their senior finance experience to ensure the Cathedral’s financial stability, overseeing the integrity of financial information and ensuring that financial controls and management are appropriate and robust for the Cathedral to thrive.

Lichfield Cathedral is looking for up to three members to join its Finance Committee with a background in finance to complement the skills and experience of the existing committee.

The successful candidates may come from any range of sectors, but they will offer strong financial acumen and a commercial approach and will bring an understanding of complex financial reporting, internal control and risk management. It would also be beneficial if the candidates have investment management experience in order to provide guidance for the Cathedral's investment portfolio. It is also expected that one of the new members will chair the Finance Committee in a few years. The new Chair would join Chapter and would need to be a practising Christian.

It is however, not necessary that all the new members of the Finance Committee be practising Christians. Although, they must be committed to the Cathedral’s Christian ethos, vision and ministry.

Lichfield Cathedral is particularly keen to improve the diversity of the Board and ensure that it is representative of the communities it supports. As those from an ethnic minority background and women are currently underrepresented on the Finance Committee, applications from those individuals would be particularly encouraged.

Lichfield Cathedral welcomes applications from everyone regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, faith or disability. It is particularly keen to improve the diversity of the Board and ensure that it is representative of the communities it supports. As those from an ethnic minority background and women are currently underrepresented on the Finance Committee, applications from those individuals would be particularly encouraged. All appointments will be made on merit, following a fair and transparent process. In line with the Equality Act 2010, however, the organisation may employ positive action where candidates from underrepresented groups can demonstrate their ability to perform the role equally well.

The Finance Committee currently meets about six times per year and the meetings are a mix of online and in-person (Chapter Office at Staffordshire) depending on the convenience of the members. Reasonable travel expenses would be reimbursed. The term for this appointment is three years and renewable up to a maximum of nine years.