WORSHIP PASTOR - Job Pack - River Church Ipswich

Job Pack

WORSHIP PASTOR

About River Church

River Church Ipswich is a brand new HTB Network church plant in the town
centre of Ipswich, which launched in September 2021 and is already growing
quickly into a thriving resource church.

Our dream is to see Ipswich overflowing with life. Our purpose is to love God,
love Ipswich, and love life. Our goals are to be Spirit-filled, people-empowering,
fun-loving, and abundantly-living.

Amy and Matt Key were invited by the Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich to
plant River Church, with a focus on reaching students, young adults, and young
families with the good news of Jesus. River Church is supported by Church of
England Strategic Development Funding (SDF) and—as part of the Inspiring
Ipswich project—has ambitious goals to grow quickly, plant more new churches,
and transform the town. The plant is based in iconic premises, formerly called St
Mary-at-the-Quay, which have recently undergone a stunning £5.1m renovation,
having closed as an Anglican church 78 years ago.

Ipswich is a city-sized town (the built-up area has a population of 180,000
people), located just 1 hour from London by train or car in the beautiful county of
Suffolk. Ipswich is one of the fastest-growing urban areas in the UK, and is home
to the newly-formed and fast-growing University of Suffolk, based just a short
walk from River Church.

River Church is committed to being a warm, encouraging, fast paced,
professional, and fun working environment where we strive for excellence and
compassion in everything we do. River Church is an exciting and challenging
place to work, full of variety. We have a ‘can do’ culture, where innovation and
creativity are encouraged, and team members are loved and supported by one
another. We are looking for faithful, ambitious, and energetic individuals who are
passionate about seeing people come to faith, leaders developed, churches
planted, lives transformed, and Ipswich overflowing with life, to be part of River
Church’s staff team. Is God calling you to join the adventure of a lifetime?

Rhiannon King, Archdeacon of Ipswich, says, “If you want to serve God and are
up for an adventure, look no further. Few things are more exciting (and hard
work) in the Christian life than a church plant, but if you get one of these
exciting posts be assured that we’ll be rooting and praying for you.”

Worship Pastor: Job Description

Role purpose
The Worship Pastor will lead sung worship at River Church, recruit, develop, and
oversee the worship and production team, and foster and encourage creativity in
all aspects of River Church’s worship and mission.

Role profile
Job title: Worship Pastor
Department: Worship and Production
Reports to: Church Leaders
Principal location: River Church Ipswich, Key Street, IP4 1BZ
DBS check required: Yes
Special conditions of employment: There is a genuine occupational requirement
that the post-holder is a Christian, as permitted under the Equality Act 2010.
Start date: Early 2022
Working days/hours: Full-time (35-37.5 hours, Sunday to Thursday, negotiable)
Travel: May be required on occasion
Holiday: 25 days per annum plus bank holidays (pro rata)
Probation period: 6 months
Contract length: initial 2 year fixed term, with potential to become permanent
Other expectations: Whilst the role is Sunday to Thursday, the role holder will
need to be available to work some other key dates, such as special services
(Christmas, Easter etc.), annual meetings, and Focus (our annual one-week church
holiday in the summer). It is expected that staff members will be active members
of River Church.
Context: River Church currently has 3 staff, and is currently recruiting for 3 other
roles, with an additional 2 to be recruited by September 2022. The church has
grown from an initial team of 20 people, to more than 120 (mainly under 35s) in
its first term, and the worship and production team now comprises 15 gifted
volunteers. Our Church Leaders are passionate about music, creativity, and
worship, having both led worship and previously worked professionally in music
and music production themselves.

Key responsibilities
• Recruit, lead, develop, and co-ordinate the worship and production team
• Lead worship (or make provision for others to lead worship) at Sunday services,
 prayer meetings, festivals, staff meetings, and other River Church events (Alpha
 weekends away, conferences etc.)

• Rehearse the worship team to ensure the provision of excellent musical worship
  with high levels of aural and visual production
• Work with Church Leaders to plan worship for all events, meetings, and
  services
• Train and mentor others to lead worship and play in worship bands
• Manage the worship and production budget, music and wireless audio
  licensing, and CCLI reporting
• Manage all elements of production (audio, video, lighting etc.)
• Identify and implement new songs and creative resources for worship, keeping
  the worship setlist contemporary, fresh, and relevant
• Work with Church Leaders to manage worship and production interns
• Encourage songwriting and the production of original worship music for local
  use and wider distribution
• Lead and contribute to weekly Alpha, Staff Meeting, Prayer Meeting, Hangouts,
  and Sunday Services (including some preaching and/or teaching)
• Produce and post high quality creative content (music, video, imagery etc.) for
  services, social media and communications, collaborating with other staff where
  appropriate
• Ensure that all regulatory requirements regarding safeguarding and health and
  safety are met in the worship and production team, attending training as
  required
• Ad hoc tasks and other project work which enhances the ministry and mission
  of River Church

Person specification
Personal qualities and beliefs
It is essential that the role holder:
• has a mature, personal faith in and relationship with God as Father, Son and
   Holy Spirit
• believes and embodies the orthodox Christian teaching revealed in the Bible
   and attested to by the historic formularies of the Church of England
• is committed to the dream, purpose, and goals of River Church
• has a passion for worship and prayer, and desire to be a worshipper, not just a
   worship leader
• has a passion for reaching people with the gospel and to seeing them grow
   into all that God has created them to be in Christ
• has the capacity to provide spiritual leadership within the worship team and to
  contribute to the spiritual direction of the wider church
• is theologically astute

Personal skills and abilities
It is essential that the role holder:
• has the ability to teach, train and develop other worship leaders and musicians
• has excellent teamwork and team-building skills, and is able to manage,
   motivate, and encourage others
• has excellent organisational skills and time management
• is self-motivated
• has good interpersonal skills
• has outstanding communication skills, both written and verbal
• has a high attention to detail and high production values
• is able to manage a departmental budget
• is flexible, with a can-do attitude
• is teachable and has a desire to learn and grow
• understands the importance of confidentiality and has good self-awareness
• has enthusiasm, energy, commitment, and a sense of humour

Knowledge, qualifications, and experience
It is essential that the role holder:
• has experience in leading contemporary, congregational sung worship
• has outstanding musical ability in vocals and guitar and/or keys
• has confidence ministering in the Holy Spirit
• is proficient in and/or able to learn to use music and production technology
   (including Logic Pro X, MultiTracks or similar, monitoring, mixing, stage lighting,
   video mixing)
• has a thorough understanding of statutory Child Protection/Safeguarding
   requirements

It is desirable that the role holder:
• is able to play another band instrument e.g., keys, drums, bass
• is experienced in and/or has the ability to learn to use Mac OS X, Pages,
   Numbers, Keynote, and ChurchSuite
• has an eye for design and aesthetics
• has relevant qualifications in theology and/or music
• is able to produce and edit creative digital media (imagery, photography, video
   etc.
• is skilled and experienced in songwriting and/or composition and/or arranging

Notes for Applicants

We particularly welcome applications from candidates whose ethnicities are
underrepresented in the Church of England.

We would welcome informal conversations with anybody considering applying for
this position. Email matt.key@riverchurchipswich.org to get in touch.

When completing the application form, please feel free to continue your answers
on separate pages if you require more room.

The closing date for applications is Sunday 30th January 2022 at midnight.

We will inform you as to whether or not you will be invited for interview by
Wednesday 2nd February 2022 at midnight.

Interviews will be held in person on Monday 7th February 2022 at River Church
Ipswich, Key Street, IP4 1BZ.

Please bring your passport (and, if necessary, proof of right to work in the UK)
and a document showing proof of your home address, such as a utility bill or
bank statement, to your interview.

Please note that any offers made are subject to: the receipt of satisfactory
references; satisfactory completion of a DBS check, safeguarding training, and
any other training necessary for the role; proof of right to work in the UK;
satisfactory completion of a 6 month probationary period; and agreement to
adhere to the policies and procedures of River Church.

Application Form

Post(s) applied for:

Personal details

Title:
First Name(s):
Surname:
Address:

Postcode:
Phone number (preferred):
Email address:

Do you have the right to to work in the UK? If no, please explain.

What notice period do you need to give to your current employer?

Education and qualifications

Please list your secondary, further, and higher educational history (if applicable)
including institutions attended, dates of study, subjects studied, and
qualifications gained.

Institution and Date   Subject and Qualification                      Grade Achieved

Please list any other training or qualifications which may be relevant to this role.

Employment history

Please list your full employment history, dates of employment, job titles, key
responsibilities, and reason for leaving. Please also include any voluntary work in
this section, and account for any gaps in your employment history.

Employer Name and Address Job Title, Dates, and Key Responsibilities   Reason for Leaving

Christian faith

Please give a brief account of your Christian journey, including how you became
a Christian, key moments in your spiritual life, and your involvement in church life.

Please describe any previous experience of Christian ministry (voluntary or paid)
which may be relevant to this role.

Suitability for this role

Please explain why you are applying for this role, why you would like to work at
River Church, and why you think God might be calling you to Ipswich.

Please explain why you believe you would be a good Worship Pastor for River
Church, based on the above job description.

Please provide links to at least two video recordings of you leading sung worship
in a live setting. These links can be links to a full service, or excerpts from one.
You may also like to provide links to other recordings demonstrating your musical
abilities, or other skills (i.e., preaching) relevant to this role, however these are
not required.

Reference 1

Please provide details of your most recent employer.

Title:
Name:
Address:

Postcode:
Phone number:
Email address:
May we approach this referee prior to interview?

Reference 2

Please provide details of your church leader.

Title:
Name:
Address:

Postcode:
Phone number:
Email address:
May we approach this referee prior to interview?

How to submit your application

Please email your completed Application Form and our Equality and Diversity
Monitoring Form (available at riverchurchipswich.org/vacancies) to
hello@riverchurchipswich.org — receipt of your application will be acknowledged
prior to the closing date. In your email, please indicate the nature of any
adjustments you would need to be made to enable you to participate in this
recruitment and interview process.

Please note that at interview, you will be required to lead two worship songs for
the interview panel.