The work of the cathedral is guided by our Purpose, Mission, Vision, and Values. The principles of Pray, Serve, and Grow outline how we plan to live these out as our worshipping community. Our current strategic plan runs until 2025.
Our Purpose
Our purpose is to worship Almighty God, to serve all God’s people and to share the good news of Jesus Christ in our diverse urban context.
Our Mission
Birmingham Cathedral is a Christian Church of the Anglican Communion and the seat of the Bishop of Birmingham. As the Church of England cathedral church and a vibrant worshipping community, we serve the people and communities of the Diocese of Birmingham. We offer hospitality and welcome as a place of gathering and connection for people of all faiths and none in order to witness to God’s love for all and to serve the common good.
Our Vision
As the cathedral church for Church of England Birmingham, we desire to be a church that is a transforming presence at the heart of the communities we seek to serve.
Our Values
As followers of Jesus Christ, we seek to grow in:
Faith
Hope
Love
Our work is guided by the values of:
Wisdom
Compassion
Justice
Inclusion
Courage.
The process of enacting our vision is guided by three strategic priorities: Pray, Serve, Grow.
We will provide the patterns and rhythms of the corporate worship of the Church of England, enriched by the Anglican choral tradition.
We will draw children and young people into the worshipping life of the cathedral through outreach and supporting emerging talent.
We will rejoice in the diversity of the communities we serve and promote inclusion as widely as possible by the provision of innovative liturgy and by the encouragement of participation and ministry of all members of our cathedral community.
We will respond creatively to missional moments in public and national life as well as local
events and develop the cathedral’s role regionally and nationally.
We will create opportunities and appropriate ways to take worship outside onto Cathedral Square.
We will support and encourage personal prayer among our congregations, staff and volunteers and ensure the provision of quiet, reflective space within the cathedral on a daily basis.
We will work as a community and with partners to develop our service of the homeless people in our midst in Cathedral Square and within our parish.
We will work as a community and with partners to support and promote good mental health and to care more effectively for those living with mental illnesses.
We will honour, joyfully and imaginatively our civic role, to mark significant, national, international and local occasions for the city and the diocese.
We will strengthen partnership with Birmingham businesses, institutions and charities to promote the common good.
We will work collaboratively with other city centre churches and members of other faiths to promote community cohesion and to serve the common good.
We will develop a distinctive approach to public theology in order to support the public ministry of the Bishop of Birmingham and to contribute to the wider life of the city and region by the promotion of reflection on corporate social responsibility, meaning, purpose and values.
We will work to grow our cathedral community in numbers and in depth by sharing the good news of the Christian faith.
We will develop a programme to recruit, train and nurture volunteers, guides, welcomers and visitors’ chaplains in order to enhance our capacity to offer hospitality and welcome in the cathedral.
We will develop the work of our education team with schools, children within the cathedral community and visitors and we will explore further partnership with the Church of England Birmingham Education Team and Birmingham Diocesan Multi-Academy Trust in order to help the children and young people we all serve to grow in faith.
We will promote the highest standards of safeguarding to ensure that the cathedral is a safe space for all people especially children and vulnerable adults.
We will also be good stewards of God’s creation by promoting the work of Eco-Church and sustainable living.
We will be good stewards of our cathedral building and of our finances. We will encourage Christian stewardship as our response to the generosity of God in Christ.
