Other Clergy

The Bishop may license ministers to serve within the Diocese either generally in any parish or ecclesiastical district or specifically to perform some particular office or to serve in connection with a mission initiative.

A licence may specify a period of time for which it will be valid, subject to limitations in regulation 29 of the Ecclesiastical Offices (Terms of Service) Regulations 2009 (as amended). The Diocesan Registrar is responsible for the preparation of licences and the associated paperwork. Additional clergy may be licensed to individual benefices or for roles working across a diocese more widely. Examples might be an Assistant Priest or Associate Priest to support ministry in a large or busy benefice, or a role such as Diocesan Director of Ordinands.

As with a priest in charge, the appointment is made by a Bishop’s Licence, which will be prepared in the Registry, together with the usual form of Declaration and Oaths.

Permission to Officiate

Clergy who have retired may wish to ask the Bishop for Permission to Officiate, commonly abbreviated to PtO. A House of Bishops’ guidance paper on this subject is at PtO Guidance. PtO enables retired clergy to undertake ministry in the Diocese, helping out colleagues as needed.

In some cases the Bishop may consider it more appropriate to grant a licence to authorise a particular ministry. Where a licence is granted it will take effect under the Common Tenure rules. A Statement of Particulars will be issued and the licence holder will continue to benefit from Ministerial Development Reviews and Continuing Ministerial Development opportunities.

Chaplains and Employed Clergy

Chaplains will generally be employed by a secular organisation (such as hospital or prison) or may be unpaid honorary roles, such as a chaplain to the RNLI. In either case they will not be on Common Tenure, but will simply hold a Bishop’s licence for the ministry they are undertaking.

Their authority to minister is normally given by a Bishop’s Licence, which will be prepared in the Registry, together with the usual form of Declaration and Oaths.

The exception to the general rule about chaplains being ‘employed’ is that Bishops’ Chaplains may sometimes be on Common Tenure, although this may vary from one diocese to another.