Job Description

King's College Cambridge intends to appoint an ordained member of the Anglican Communion to the position of Dean, in succession to the Revd. Dr. Stephen Cherry, from January 2026. The Dean will become a Fellow of the College and take a full part in the intellectual life of the College. He or she will have overall authority in the Chapel and responsibility for its liturgical life and administration under the Governing Body. He or she will provide, along with the Chaplain, spiritual and pastoral support to all members of the College.

King's College is one of the constituent colleges of Cambridge University. It is governed by the Provost and some 140 Fellows, who form the Governing Body of the College, which in turn devolves general control and management to the annually elected College Council. There are about 450 undergraduate and 250 postgraduate students, and more than 250 non-academic staff. The College is able to accommodate all undergraduate and postgraduate students. King's tries to select the ablest students from all backgrounds. The undergraduates contain a high proportion of students from state school backgrounds as well as significant numbers from outside the UK. The graduate body is completely international. Some of the students belong to other faiths and many are unconvinced by or uninterested in the Christian faith. King's is noted for its informal and friendly atmosphere and concern for academic values.

Further information about the College is available at the website www.kings.cam.ac.uk

The Dean and the Chapel

The Chapel was central to the original plan of Henry VI for his College, and continues to be a dominant feature of the College. Because of the architectural distinction of the building, the beauty of its stained glass windows, and the musical excellence of its choir, the Chapel attracts and makes a strong personal impact upon thousands of worshippers and visitors each year. The Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols on Christmas Eve is broadcast to a worldwide audience.

The College sees the maintenance of the building and of its traditions of worship both as a responsibility and as an opportunity. It is in the context of the Chapel that many outside the University experience the humane and liberal values for which the College stands. The Dean has an important role as the public face of the College for those who worship in the Chapel; he or she is in a position to play a prominent public role within Cambridge and more widely.

Chapel Services

The Dean of Chapel is responsible to Council and the Governing Body for the conduct of services within the Chapel. The Chapel, in common with other Cambridge colleges, is not a formal part of the diocesan organisation of the Church of England, but the Dean is customarily licensed by the Bishop of Ely.

During University Full Term and part of the Long Vacation there are daily services. The normal pattern on weekdays is a sung service each evening. These are mainly Office services but one evening service (usually Thursday) is a Choral Eucharist. Choral Evensong follows a broadly traditional Book of Common Prayer pattern. Choral Eucharist uses sung settings from the Latin and Anglican traditions. At weekends there is Choral Evensong on Saturday and Sunday evenings, while the Sunday morning services are a mixture of occasional Choral Matins and more frequent Choral Eucharists, in both cases with a sermon. Outside Full Term, and particularly in the periods leading up to the great Christian festivals of Christmas and Easter, there are other services as well as performances in which the Choir takes a leading role.

These services, along with the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols on Christmas Eve, are open to the public as well as to members of the College and University. Most of these services are sung by the College Choir, but on Mondays the evening service is sung by King's Voices, a mixed-voice choir drawn from members of the College. Readers, servers and acolytes are drawn from members of the College.

The Dean and Chaplain both take a regular part in both spoken and sung services. Each is normally present at services six days a week during Full Term, allowing each in turn a weekday without liturgical responsibilities. The Dean and the Chaplain normally each preach once or twice a term, with the Dean inviting preachers for the other Sundays. The present Chaplain, Dr. Jonathan Kimber, is on a temporary contract until the summer of 2026 in order to allow whoever is appointed Dean to take full part in the appointment of a Chaplain.

The Director of Music, Daniel Hyde, is a Fellow of the College and is responsible for training the College Choir and for the provision of music at services. The planning and preparation of Chapel Services is normally shared between the Dean, Director of Music, the Chaplain and the Assistant Director of Music, who conducts King's Voices. Significant changes to the form or pattern of services take place only after consultation with the Chapel Committee and the Fellowship more generally.

Administration

The Dean works with other College Officers to manage the administration of the Chapel. In particular the Director of Music is responsible for the Choir, the First Bursar provides support with finance, and the Domus Bursar provides support with maintaining the fabric of the building and with tourism. A Chapel Committee, on which the Dean sits ex officio, has oversight of the Chapel and the activities of the choirs. The Dean is also an ex officio member of the Concerts Committee, and Development Committee, and is in attendance at the Human Resources Committee.

The Dean takes senior departmental responsibility for all matters concerning people management, compliance, safeguarding, security, and Health and Safety within the Chapel and its activities. The Dean is assisted by an Executive Assistant. The day-to-day administration of the Chapel with regard to tourism, concerts and services is run by the Chapel Manager, who oversees the two Chapel Services Team leaders and the Chapel Clerks. The College manages the very large number of tourists through a team of Visitor Guides who are managed by the Head of Visitor Services.

Patronage

King's College is the lay patron of several livings. The Dean is ex officio a member of, and normally leads, the Church Patronage Committee, which is responsible for recommending appointments to these livings and maintaining links with the parishes. In the past this has been done by inviting the clergy in those parishes to King's as well as by visiting them.

Fundraising

The Chapel plays a significant part in College fundraising. Raising external funds is essential if the Chapel fabric and activities are to flourish. The large number of paying visitors to the Chapel produce a significant income. Fundraising is the concern of the College's Development Office and the Dean is expected to support and participate in its activities. In particular, the Dean supports the activities of the Provost, Director of Development, and Development Office in raising money internationally to support the Chapel and its activities.

The Dean and the College

The Dean as a College Officer

The Dean is a College Officer and Fellow of the College. Like all College Officers (which include the Bursars, the Senior Tutor, the Director of Development and the Director of Music) the Dean's role is framed by the College Statutes. The Statues establish that the Dean has 'control of Divine Service', and has overall authority over the administration of the Chapel and oversees its day-to-day life. In practice this means that the Dean is head of the Chapel Department and has a particular responsibility to manage the diary and the Chapel staff.

The Director of Music's role fits within this statutory framework and involves a professional relationship of mutual trust and respect with the Dean, which is vital to the smooth running of what is such a high profile and public part of the College. As one of the College Officers, the Dean has a particular role in advising the Council and Governing Body on the running of the College and is expected to be willing to stand for election to the College Council and other major College committees.

The most significant part of the Dean's task is to integrate the Chapel into the life of the College.

The Dean in the Academic Community

As a Fellow, the Dean is expected to play a full part in the academic community of the College. He or she is expected to have a keen interest and involvement in intellectual endeavour and it is important that he or she commands the intellectual respect of the fellowship. Many past Deans have been publishing scholars who have continued their studies within the University and been actively involved with the Divinity Faculty. However, the College recognises that intellectual leadership can also be exercised in other ways. The College is able to offer generous support for seminars, conferences and other academic projects; all Fellows are encouraged to take advantage of the opportunities which this offers as well as the opportunity to talk in more informal gatherings about their academic work.

Former Deans have acted as Directors of Studies in Theology and Religious Studies, guiding those students studying in this field, supervising them in their own specialist topics and arranging outside supervisors in other topics. A suitably qualified Dean would be expected to serve in a similar capacity and also to mentor the College's postgraduate students in Theology.

The Pastoral Role of the Dean

As a priest, the Dean has a particular role in offering pastoral support to Fellows and to members of the College staff. The Dean is expected to support the Chaplain in offering pastoral care to students and in particular to take a close interest in the personal welfare of the Choral and Organ Scholars.

The welfare of the Choristers, and of King's College School at which they board and are educated, is also a natural concern of the Dean. The Dean will be expected to take an interest in this school, which is adjacent to the College, by acting as a governor and in other ways. The outgoing Dean has been Chair of the Governors of the School, but this is not an ex officio position.

The Person

We are looking for someone who can provide leadership and inspiration, enabling the Chapel to act as a focus within the College community and encouraging the development of that community. This will require the ability to work with the Fellowship in a relationship of creative engagement.

The ideal candidate will demonstrate the following:

Qualifications & experience

An ordained Anglican priest with prior experience of significant responsibility.

Graduate, and comfortable in the company of students and academics

Experience of managing and leading others

Experience of a secular organisation or institution (desirable)

Personal Qualities and Abilities

Assiduous in attention to detail, and capable of providing thorough knowledge of Anglican liturgy and insightful with regard to the choral tradition.

Well-developed skills of liturgical participation and leadership including clear speech, accurate singing, engaging preaching, sense of occasion, and a good sense of liturgical timing.

Calm, confident and reassuring demeanour.

Clear sense of role, priorities, boundaries and institutional culture.

Reliable, punctual and courteous in all circumstances.

Kindly and accessible ministerial presence.

Evidence of sympathetic engagement with people of non-Christian faiths.

Evidence of an intellectual hinterland beyond theology (desirable)

Remuneration and Benefits

Remuneration

Salary will depend upon experience, but for a suitably qualified applicant will not be less than 70,000. The College would also be willing to provide rented accommodation where that is required.

Hours of Work

The nature of the work is such that there are no normal or fixed working hours. The successful candidate will be required to work such hours as are reasonably necessary (during both Full-Term and vacations) for the proper performance of the role and will be expected to carry out the duties in such a way and at such times as to make themselves available, amongst other things, for Governing Body and College Committee meetings.

Benefits

The Dean enjoys all the benefits of a College Fellowship, including 40 days annual leave, free meals, annual research grant, free car parking, access to a private healthcare scheme, a Cycle to Work scheme, and use of a gym. The successful candidate will be able to remain a member of the Church of England pension scheme.

Safeguarding

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. Successful applicants are subject to an enhanced DBS check and must provide proof of qualifications in accordance with the requirements of the Children Act 1989, as amended. Proof of identity and eligibility to work in the UK is also required.

How to Apply

Please see our website for information on how to apply.

The closing date for applications is

Thursday 12 June 2025 at 2.00 p.m

.

Shortlisted candidates will be asked to come to King's College for meetings and interviews for the period from

10.00 a.m. on July 10th 2025 to 12.30 p.m. on July 11th

.

The appointment of the successful candidate will be formally ratified by the Governing Body on July 18th. It is expected that the new Dean will join the College in

January 2026

.

Job Types: Full-time, Permanent

Pay: From 70,000.00 per year

Benefits:

Canteen Company events Company pension Cycle to work scheme Discounted or free food Enhanced maternity leave Enhanced paternity leave Free parking On-site gym On-site parking Sick pay
Schedule:

Weekend availability
Work Location: In person

Application deadline: 12/06/2025
Expected start date: 05/01/2026