Assistant Pastor

THE FELLOWSHIP OF INDEPENDENT EVANGELICAL CHURCHES; Sandbach; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 42,000; Full time

Job summary

Wheelock Heath Baptist Church in Cheshire is seeking an Assistant Pastor to support the elders and lead in preaching, pastoral care, and vision setting for the congregation.

The role offers development opportunities, including training and two paid conferences yearly, with a three-year initial contract and potential for broader ministry responsibilities.

Qualifications

• Gifts in teaching God's word
• A godly character in line with Titus 1 and 1 Timothy 3
• Love for God, His people and the lost
• Agreement with the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (and FIEC statements)
• Willingness to pursue part-time theological education if needed

Responsibilities

• Regular preaching of God's word
• Pastoral care
• Leadership of the church with the other elders
• Mentoring by the pastor/other elders
• Opportunities for development and training (including two paid conferences a year and annual study leave)

Skills

Gifts in teaching God's word

Pastoral care

Godly character

Love for God and people

Theological alignment

Job description

Assistant Pastor

Wheelock Heath Baptist Church

The Church
Wheelock Heath Baptist Church is a Reformed Baptist church in Cheshire. We meet in a newly expanded church building in the village of Winterley/Wheelock Heath. We currently have 102 members spread across numerous towns and villages in south Cheshire. We are part of the FIEC and have strong connections to the North West Gospel Partnership.
We are committed to the mission of making disciples in our region. This includes a range of evangelistic endeavours in our village. It also means a commitment to church planting in South Cheshire. Eight years ago, we started Grace Church Sandbach which has now become an independent church. We have also gathered a core group to plant a church in the nearby town of Nantwich, hoping to begin meeting in Easter 2027.The Role
The church is currently led by five elders. Two are full-time members of staff. Tim Wilson has been in full-time employment at the church since September 2015. Dan Norman joined as Assistant Pastor in September 2024 on a three-year contract. We have three elders who are not employed by the church (Russ Ikin, Simon Phillips, and Rhidian Phillips) alongside five deacons. We are looking to appoint a new assistant pastor to succeed Dan Norman. The salary would be evaluated based on experience using a teachers' salary as a benchmark.
The details of the role will be shaped around the individual who is appointed. It will include, among other things:

• Regular preaching of God's word
• Pastoral care
• Leadership of the church with the other elders
• Mentoring by the pastor/other elders
• Opportunities for further development and training (including two paid conferences a year and annual study leave)

The primary purpose of this assistant pastor role is to support the existing congregation and to provide opportunity for the applicant to grow in their ministry gifts. We hope the applicant upon completion would be well equipped to become a pastor or planter elsewhere.The Process
The appointment will be for 3 years in the first instance. We look to fill the role by September 2027, but would happily consider applicants who could begin earlier.

Required Skills

The Applicant
We are seeking a man with:

• A godly character (as laid out in Titus 1 and 1 Timothy 3)
• A love for God, his people and the lost
• Gifts in teaching God's word
• Agreement with our theological position as set out in the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (excepting 26.4) (this can be found here: https://1689londonbaptistconfession.com/) and the FIEC statements on Gospel Unity, Women in Ministry and Same Sex Marriage
• We are happy to consider a candidate with or without theological training. If the candidate had no theological training, we would be happy to fund part-time theological education and adapt salary and expectations accordingly.

Deadline for applications 1st November 2026. Earlier enquiries encouraged.

This job has been listed by an FIEC Church. We are a family of more than 600 independent local churches with a heart to see the gospel of Jesus making a difference through our nation.

Find out more about FIEC and how you can get involved.