THE POST OF FINANCE DIRECTOR
York Minster invites everyone to discover God’s love through our welcome, worship, learning and
work.
GENERAL
York Minster is one of the great institutions as well as one of the most famous buildings of England.
It is one of the magnets that draw people to visit York and a defining symbol of the ancient “capital
of the North”. People from all over the world come to explore the Minster, and visitor surveys find a
high level of satisfaction from their experience. It is one of the centres of York’s lively cultural life,
where many concerts and exhibitions take place. It is a very diverse place, with a large Stoneyard
which employs a sizeable skilled workforce, a fine Library run in partnership with the University of
York, a Treasury of important artefacts, a preparatory and pre-preparatory school in which the
Choristers are educated, and St William’s College which is a complex ancient building where many
activities take place.
But the heart of the Minster is the round of worship, presented in a magnificent setting with
superlative music and liturgy, befitting a holy place which is passionately loved by people near and
far. The current “York Minster Revealed” programme (“YMR”), which runs until 2016, is being
carried out with substantial funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, and administered in partnership
with the York Minster Fund. It will not only conserve and restore the stone and mediaeval glass of
the Minster, it will also give us the opportunity to develop new audiences and inform and inspire our
visitors when they come, and provide much improved facilities for them. It marks a major step in
the long history of the Minster.
As we face uncertainty in the economy, we are investing in new marketing and commercial
strategies to enhance our financial opportunities, recognising not only the significant contribution
that visitor income makes to our bottom line but also the risk of relying so heavily on this income
stream. We have also developed a healthy interaction between the Dean and Chapter and the senior
staff (The Directors) of the Minster so that we plan for our future in a collaborative way.
The Minster’s Governance
York Minster is a cathedral (the title “Minster” is merely the familiar and time-hallowed name by
which it is known) with a permanent staff of 200 (50 p.t.) and 500 volunteers. It has also some 400
regular worshippers across a wide range of Sunday and weekday services. These groups are
represented by a Community Committee. There is a long standing and active Friends organisation.
Fundraising in general and the administration of significant capital funds, including those held
specifically for YMR, is carried out by the York Minster Fund, which is a separate Trust, working
closely with the Dean and Chapter.
The Cathedrals Measure (2001) is represented (as is the case in all cathedrals) by a legal Constitution
and Statutes, by which York Minster is defined as a corporate body, the Dean and Chapter being
responsible for the day to day management, with the Cathedral Council (chaired by Judge Peter
Collier and representing the wider community of this part of England), and the College of Canons
(representing the diocese of York) having their due parts to play in offering advice and monitoring
progress.
Finance Director Supporting Information
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The Chapter directs and oversees the administration and affairs of the cathedral, in addition to
ordering the worship and promoting the mission of the Cathedral. The Chapter controls the property
and directs the affairs of the corporation. It is the body that governs the cathedral generally and
which decides whether the cathedral (i.e the corporate body of the cathedral) should enter into a
contract or other legal agreement. It sets policy, direction and key objectives, approves strategy and
the annual budget, monitors performance and oversees all the cathedral’s activities, as well as being
responsible for all key personnel.
The Chapter is chaired by the Dean. The (currently) three Residentiary Canons are members of
Chapter, together with a number (currently two) of Lay Canons. The Chapter Steward is not a
member of Chapter but attends all meetings and contributes to discussion, contributing as the
senior lay colleague.
The Directors form part of the senior leadership team, which meets weekly to consider ongoing
operational issues and to roll-out strategy. The Chapter and Chapter Steward rely on each Director
to share their expertise as we develop strategy and policy in order to meet the Minster’s mission.
The Minster has five key purposes in support of delivering Mission.

to play an active role, across the Diocese of York and the Northern Province of the Church of
England supporting the work of the Archbishop, sharing our skills and knowledge and
working with communities and partners to further our mission;

to inspire people, through the story of Jesus Christ, through our worship, prayer and music
and through the heritage and history of York Minster, onto a journey of personal and
corporate transformation;

to engage all our community in a participative and consultative way;

to put learning and the transformation of ourselves and of others at the heart of all we do;

to manage our business successfully, covering our costs and generating the funding
necessary to further our mission and to sustain the Minster.
We recognise that the coming years may demand we take difficult, brave and well-informed
decisions so we have agreed that our values will be;
 Courage
 Trust
 Wisdom
Finance Director Supporting Information
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