About The Role
**Families Mission Minister – Ascension Balham**
Ascension Balham is a thriving Anglican church in South West London, passionate about spreading the love of God to Balham and beyond. We’re looking for an enthusiastic, creative and relational Families Mission Minister to help children and families encounter Jesus, grow in faith and discover what it means to follow him in everyday life.
Hundreds of children and families come through our doors every week, many with little or no connection to church. From our busy Community Hub and café to toddler groups, Parish Play, Puppet Praise and Bubble Church, we have an exciting opportunity to build relationships, share the gospel and help families take their next steps in faith.
**This is about more than running great children’s programmes.** We want someone who loves connecting with families, is confident sharing their faith and sees the potential for mission in everyday conversations. You’ll help families explore faith, develop creative pathways into discipleship and equip parents and carers to nurture their children’s faith at home.
You’ll also lead outstanding Sunday children’s ministry, oversee all-age worship and children’s discipleship activities, and provide pastoral support to families. A key part of the role will be identifying, inspiring and equipping volunteers, developing leaders and building teams that can grow and sustain excellent ministry.
We’re looking for an experienced ministry leader who combines a passion for evangelism and family discipleship with excellent communication skills, biblical creativity and a pioneering spirit. You’ll be someone who builds relationships naturally, takes initiative, develops others and is excited about helping families follow Jesus seven days a week.
The post is open to ordained clergy and qualified lay applicants who are practising Christians and fully sympathetic to the aims and ethos of the Church of England.
**Salary:** Up to £45,000 per annum, or clergy package if ordained
**Hours:** Full-time, with part-time possible
**Location:** Ascension Church, Balham
**To apply:** Visit [ascensionbalham.org/jobs](https://www.ascensionbalham.org/jobs) to complete the application form and attach your CV.
For an informal conversation, contact Revd Marcus Gibbs at marcus.gibbs@ascensionbalham.org.
**Closing date:** Monday 30 November, midnight
**Interviews:** 7 and 8 December at Ascension Balham
The Diocese of London is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults through the use of the Safer Recruitment practice guidance. This role is subject to acceptable pre-appointment checks, including a satisfactory Enhanced DBS Check.
The role has three interconnected priorities, reflecting a family’s journey from first encounter to a growing life of faith.
1. Helping new families encounter Jesus
Encountering Jesus through relationships and community
Hundreds of parents, carers and children come through Ascension’s Community Hub and cafe every week. We want someone who loves being around families, naturally initiates conversations, builds friendships and sees the extraordinary opportunity for mission.
We are looking for someone who is genuinely interested in people’s lives, remembers names, listens well and notices opportunities to make meaningful connections. They should be comfortable talking about faith, offering to pray for people and, where appropriate, praying with them there and then. Someone who can naturally and sensitively move conversations towards Jesus without being pushy.
They will have a visible, relational presence in Parish Coffee, Parish Play, toddler groups and Puppet Praise, helping families feel known and welcomed, and inviting them to explore faith and connect with church.
They will also develop outreach through events for the wider community, identifying, inspiring and equipping others to share in this mission.
For this person, spending time with families in the café and Community Hub isn’t a distraction from ministry. It is ministry.
2. Helping Bubble Church families take their next steps
From initial connection to growing faith and belonging
Bubble Church regularly welcomes 40–50 families each Sunday, most of whom are new to church. This is an extraordinary missional opportunity.
We want someone who gets alongside these families, particularly parents, building relationships and helping them explore faith and take their next steps towards following Jesus.
Working closely with the national Bubble Church team, they will develop creative and accessible pathways into discipleship, faith exploration, small groups and the wider life of Ascension.
They will also identify and develop people who can build relationships with Bubble Church families, support parents and help others explore faith, so that this ministry grows through a wider team rather than depending on one individual.
It’s not simply about how many families attend Bubble Church, but what happens next in their journey with Jesus.
3. Helping church families follow Jesus seven days a week
Nurturing lifelong faith in children and families
We believe parents and carers have a unique and vital role in nurturing their children’s faith.
We want someone who gets alongside church families, helping parents grow in confidence and in their own faith, and equipping them to disciple their children through the everyday rhythms of family life. This represents an important philosophy of ministry.
We’re not looking for someone who sees parents as helpers in the church’s children’s ministry. We’re looking for someone who sees the church as a partner in parents’ ministry with their children.
Alongside this, the Families Mission Minister will lead outstanding Sunday children’s ministry, providing engaging, creative and biblically grounded teaching. They will oversee all-age worship and children’s discipleship activities, and provide pastoral support to families.
Excellent Sunday children’s ministry is the baseline, not the ceiling. We’re not just building a great Sunday programme. We want to help families follow Jesus seven days a week.
We are looking for someone who combines the heart of an evangelist, the skills of an outstanding children’s minister, a passion for family discipleship and the ability to inspire and multiply ministry through others.
They must be an exceptional communicator and practitioner with children and families, able to captivate a room, communicate the gospel with clarity and warmth, and lead memorable experiences that help children and parents encounter Jesus.
Crucially, they will identify, inspire, raise up and equip volunteer leaders, building teams capable of delivering excellent children’s ministry and developing new areas of family discipleship.
They will invest in people’s gifts, give them meaningful responsibility and help them grow as confident leaders. The successful candidate’s greatest impact will come not simply through what they personally deliver, but through the people they equip and the ministry they multiply.
In particular, we are looking for someone who is:
Naturally relational and energised by people: Warm, confident and genuinely interested in others. Someone who loves being around people, draws energy from building relationships and naturally enjoys connecting with parents, carers and families, particularly those with little connection to church.
Evangelistically motivated: Passionate about helping families encounter Jesus, comfortable sharing faith and praying with people.
A champion of family discipleship: Deeply committed to the conviction that parents and carers have a unique role in nurturing their children’s faith. Understands that the church’s calling is not simply to teach children on Sundays, but to equip and empower parents and carers to help their children follow Jesus seven days a week.
An outstanding practitioner: Brilliant at communicating with children and families, teaching the Bible creatively, developing or sourcing excellent curricula and leading engaging services and sessions.
A developer of leaders: Proven in identifying potential, inspiring others, training and coaching volunteers, and releasing people into meaningful leadership.
An experienced ministry leader: Able to organise and oversee excellent children’s ministry, establishing strong teams and effective systems without becoming absorbed in every operational detail.
An energetic, visionary self-starter: Brings enthusiasm, drive and initiative. Creative, proactive and excited by new opportunities, with the energy and determination to turn ideas into action and inspire others to join in.
A committed disciple: Spirit-filled, grounded in Scripture, prayerful, collaborative and passionate about seeing lives transformed.
Committed to safeguarding: Understands the importance of creating safe, welcoming and inclusive environments for children and families, including those with additional needs.
The post is open to both ordained clergy and qualified lay persons. It is subject to an occupational requirement that the postholder be a practising Christian, in full sympathy with the aims and ethos of the Church of England (Equality Act 2010, Schedule 9, Part 1).
The successful candidate will be subject to the safer recruitment process, including an enhanced DBS check.
Equal Opportunities
The Diocese of London is committed to creating and sustaining a diverse and inclusive workforce which represents our context and wider community. We are aware that those of Global Majority Heritage/United Kingdom Minority Ethnic (GMH/UKME) and disabled people are currently under-represented among our clergy and workforce, and we particularly encourage applications from those with the relevant skills and experience that will increase this representation.