Advowsons

Advowsons: The College Livings

About Advowsons

An advowson is the right of a patron to appoint a clergyman or clergywoman to a parish. Keble College is either sole or joint patron of 67 parishes all over England from Cornwall to Norfolk and from the Isle of Wight to Yorkshire. Once, the patron had complete power to appoint the new priest; today, that power is quite rightly exercised jointly with the local bishop and the parish itself.

The College tries to be an interested and active patron, and to that end we invite the clergy from our parishes to the College for a biennial conference. The Chaplain accepts invitations to preach in the parishes whenever possible, and, when a vacancy arises, visits the parish concerned to guide them through the appointment process. We also invite parishioners to join our Corporate Communion services once a year, and for a Keble Parishes Day lunch and evensong every other year.

The Chaplain acts as Secretary to the Chapel and Advowsons Committee, which oversees the College's patronage. The Committee is chaired by the Warden and comprises six Fellows of the College.