Lead Chaplain

The Lead Chaplain is responsible for the provision and further development of the Chaplaincy Service within Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals.

The Lead Chaplain is responsible, with ordained and lay colleagues in the Chaplaincy Team, for the religious, spiritual and pastoral care of all patients, visitors, staff, volunteers and students in the Trust Hospitals. Working with other Faith Leaders, the Team has a duty for all people who access and use our services whatever their faith or belief.

The Lead Chaplain will lead the Trust’s Chaplaincy and Spiritual Care Service, providing strategic, professional, and operational leadership to ensure the delivery of high-quality pastoral, spiritual, and religious care for patients, families, carers, and staff. The postholder will oversee a responsive multi-faith service, working closely with clinical teams and community faith leaders to support people of all faiths and beliefs, including those with no faith.

The role includes managing chaplaincy staff and volunteers, developing policies and service standards, supporting staff wellbeing, advising on matters relating to faith, belief, spirituality, and culturally sensitive care, and ensuring the service contributes effectively to patient experience, end of life care, bereavement support, and organisational wellbeing. The Lead Chaplain will also provide expert support in complex and sensitive situations, including serious illness, trauma, sudden death, and major incidents.

This is an important leadership role requiring compassion, emotional resilience, strong partnership working, and a commitment to inclusive, high-quality spiritual care within a busy acute hospital environment.

Our mission, vision and values are at the heart of North Cheshire and Mersey NHS Foundation Trust (NCM). They underpin everything we do and everything we aspire to be as an organisation

Our mission is to be exceptional for our patients, our communities and each other

Our vision is to be a great organisation providing excellent healthcare and opportunities to work and learn

Our approach to healthcare is founded on our four core values :

• Kind – we are caring, supporting and respectful to everyone
• Open – we are honest, transparent and open to new ways of working
• Fair – we listen, value our differences and are inclusive to all
• One team – we work well together and with our communities

We employ almost 6,500 people from more than 80 nationalities and are fully committed to being an equal, diverse and inclusive employer. Our culture and values ensure that everyone is treated with dignity and respect, and that no job applicant or employee is disadvantaged at any stage of their journey.

We are also proud to be an Armed Forces Friendly organisation and welcome applications from members of the Armed Forces community, including veterans, reservists and families.

Working at NCM means becoming part of a dedicated team of clinical and support staff who are passionate about keeping people well and supporting wellbeing. If you share our values and are motivated by making a difference for our patients, we'd be delighted to receive your application

For full details of roles and responsibilities, please see the attached job description.

FULL JOB DESCRIPTION ATTACHED