General Manager and PA

This position offers a unique opportunity to assist with the day-to-day operations of a Roman Catholic Church based in Cambridge, as the General Manager/Rector’s PA. In this standalone role, you will be pivotal in coordinating the smooth running of the church, whilst also providing administrative support to the Clergy in their service to the parish.

Applications are welcome from candidates with backgrounds including operations, general management and/or personal assistant support. You will be comfortable working alone and confident to use your own initiative and judgement. With excellent communication and interpersonal skills, you will enjoy engaging with the community and have the ability to interact with individuals at all levels.

This is a full-time role, working 8.00am-4.30pm (Mon-Fri) and you will be based on-site and parking is available for employees.

As the General Manager and PA, you will be responsible for:

Personal Assistant to the Rector: Daily communication with Rector and relevant clergy;diary management; record keeping of communications; filing and handling correspondence

Parish Secretary: Responding to general enquiries; operating internal phones and communication systems; answering the door to visitors; handling post; preparing newsletters, minute taking and report processing, tickets and papers for parish groups and maintaining online presence via various social media platforms

Maintenance: Maintaining the working environment in the office; handling day-to-day aspects of contracts and agreements in place for regular maintenance jobs for the church and rectory; gathering quotations for work and securing sign-off; arranging contractor visits and reviewing all maintenance contracts and systems in place to ensure optimum service and value for money

Child Protection Officer: Familiarsation with relevant legislation and undertaking training to complete DBS checks; liaising with parish adults who have contact with children, ensuring they know their responsibilities and have a valid DBS check; ensuring any vulnerable person of any age is protected; keeping relevant confidential records of conversations and concerns and instigating relevant action when necessary

Line Manager for non-pastoral staff: Line management responsibility for agency cleaning staff, supervising their daily responsibilities

Handling bookings and events: Coordinating diary of baptisms, confirmation, weddings, funerals, parish outings and ticketed events; organising transport when needed; handling event fees and ticket sales; Making entries into the appropriate Registers for Baptisms, Confirmations, Receptions, Marriages, First Holy Communions and Deaths

Ordering stock and replacement items: Orderingstationery and office items and other deliveries when necessary, keeping an accurate record of orders

Car Park Monitoring: Keeping a record of car park lettings and waiting list and assisting Confidently address misuse of car park incidents.

Health and Safety: Ensuring that the rectory, church and parish centre are adequately covered by health and safety protocols, including up to date first aid boxes, posters, risk assessments, etc.

The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate:

• Proven experience in a similar role, supporting and assisting at senior level
• Experience in Health & Safety, Risk Management, Facilities and/or Estates Management would be advantageous
• Confident and proactive, with the ability to work using own initiative and judgement
• Excellent organisational skills, with the ability to prioritise, plan and structure workload and operate sensitively and effectively within a church environment
• Strong interpersonal skills with confidence to deal with people at every level
• Excellent written communication skills to draft letters, briefing notes etc.
• Discretion and diplomacy in dealing with confidential information and sensitive issues
• High standards of accuracy and attention to detail
• Highly competent in standard software packages including MS Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, Publisher)
• Ability to create print and online media
• A willingness to acquire new knowledge and skills and comfortable with learning new technology
• Willingness to work flexibly to meet the demands of the role
• An interest in the operation of charities or churches (desirable)
• An understanding of the Catholic or Christian churches (desirable)

To apply for the role of General Manager and PA, please send a covering letter together with a copy of your CV