Incumbents and Priests-in-Charge, especially those without ordained colleagues, will often need to arrange for cover, especially when on holiday or sickness. The Register of Clergy On-call is a team of Clergy with Permission to Officiate (PTO), living across the diocese, who are willing to give locum cover for services during holidays, sickness and emergencies, sabbaticals and vacancies.
For more information about the Register, contact the Retired Clergy Officer, the Revd Canon Julian Hubbard.
Fees for locums
The Register charges the standard occasional duty fees, plus 10%, to cover Register expenses. Travel expenses of the locum minister is charged at the current HMRC rate. Requests for locum cover should be made to the Diocesan Clerical Register Administrator, giving as much notice as possible.
Fees are revised each year with effect from 1 September in line with the rates in the Table of Parochial Fees from The Archbishops' Council prevailing on that date, as follows.
Sundays and Festivals
£50 for the first service, (the rate applicable for "Burial of body in churchyard on separate occasion").
£34 for a second or subsequent service by the same minister in the same parish church on the same day,(the rate applicable for "Burial of body in cemetery immediately preceding or following on from service in church").
Weekdays
£32 for each service, (the rate applicable for "Burial of body in cemetery immediately preceding or following on from service in church").
Contact
Revd Canon Julian Hubbard | Retired Clergy Officer
Notes
- If the arrangement is made with the Register, an account will be rendered to the parish and all fees should be paid to the Register. This is usually the most practical arrangement if a priest assists with several parishes.
- Where parishes make a direct arrangement with the priest, the latter should provide a written request for payment to the parish, which should be paid promptly.
- It is hoped that all retired clergy who apply for Permission to Officiate in the diocese will agree to put their names on the Register.
- The provision for payment of a fee does not apply to LLM (Readers) nor to 'swaps' of stipendiary clergy between parishes, nor to SSMs. The parish should however meet travelling expenses.
- There is a statutory fee due to the DBF for weddings and funerals. In most instances, a PTO may be entitled to retain the full DBF fee. See Diocese of Guildford Parochial Fees Policy.
- During a vacancy, that part of the parochial fee due to the DBF may be used to pay fees to those on the Clergy Register. See Diocese of Guildford Parochial Fees Policy.