Our latest e-bulletin is published here. Check out news on FE Sunday 15 May, new training for young people in dialogue skills, and much more!
Category: News
FE Sunday – being held for the first time ever on Sunday 15 May 2022 – is an opportunity to pray for your local college and for the Further Education sector, and to consider how your church could love and serve your local college. More details and resources will become available soon. Meanwhile, watch our region’s FE Chaplaincy Ambassador Nigel Roberts introducing FE Sunday, here or above.
There are TWO opportunities to participate in the ‘Getting Involved in FE Chaplaincy’ workshop being run by the Methodist Church in collaboration with WM FE Chaplaincy Ambassador Nigel Roberts, on 11 October at 7.30pm and 14 October at 11am. These 45 minute workshops are free to join – just register your interest here.
On 22 October Paul Wilcox of the Christian Coach and Mentor Network is leading an online Introduction to Mentoring training day. The aim of the day is to give chaplains a portfolio of tools and skills to help them in this important area. Filled with practical ideas borne out of more than 20 years’ experience in the field, Paul will help you develop confidence to offer a mentoring service in your context. A CPD certificate will be given at the end of the course along with a complimentary copy of the book Intentional Mentoring. For further information and to reserve your place contact Nigel Roberts, WM FE Chaplaincy Ambassador, at: fechaplaincy@saltleytrust.org.uk
You are warmly invited to join the Centre for Chaplaincy in Education for their Annual Online Commissioning Service for Chaplains in Schools and Colleges.
This event celebrates and recognises the enormous contribution made by chaplains within their school and college communities and seeks to affirm and encourage them as they begin a new academic year.
Join together with leading church dignitaries from all denominations including; the Bishop of Durham, Rev Paul Butler, the Bishop of Shrewsbury, Rev Mark Davies, the Vice President of Methodist Conference, Mrs Barbara Easton and the Free Churches Moderator, Rev Hugh Osgood – as well as headteachers, Diocesan Directors of Education, and school pupils from across the UK, to celebrate chaplaincy in education. Together we shall commit ourselves to serve God and the communities to which God has called us.
This is a family service and all are welcome.
Please reserve a seat.bit.ly/CCECom2021
In responding to the needs expressed by colleges we are looking to partner with Renew Wellbeing and offer an introduction to their approach to wellbeing that has been so successful in churches and is now being extended to young people in a range of settings and in particular FE.
Renew Wellbeing helps churches open spaces of welcome and inclusion in partnership with mental health teams to improve mental and emotional wellbeing. This successful outreach is now being extended to include young people in schools and colleges and their families.
Please contact Nigel Roberts (fechaplaincy[at]saltleytrust.org.uk) to register your interest. An introductory session is set for 25 August, 10am, with full training to follow for those wishing to pursue the project further.
We’re really pleased to announce the appointment of Nigel Roberts as WM FE Chaplaincy Ambassador!
Nigel has worked for 36 years with Youth for Christ, during which time he has led a number of local centres, headed up the education team ay head office and now holds the position of education advisor on secondment to CYM ( the institute for children youth and mission) where he is a tutor specialising in chaplaincy and education issues. In the past 17 years he has worked part time in schools in a community chaplaincy role retiring from that post 18 months ago. Nigel worships at a Baptist church in Ashby de la zouch and preaches on a methodist circuit. He currently leads the online worship for children and young people in his church. He has written a number of books including Explore the Christian faith, Faith and Drama, Chaplaincy with Children and Young People and Growing Faithful Disciples.
He is married to Gillian with 4 grandchildren and loves bird watching, basketball, theatre and doctor who. He is an avid collector of classic american comic books and runs a youth and film theatre group who have performed widely and won a number of awards.
He has a passion for chaplaincy and is looking forward to finding new ways to inspire and support those involved in or thinking of this ministry. You can contact him on fechaplaincy[at]saltleytrust.org,uk
On 29 April the Church of England launched their new report on the Church’s engagement with the Further Education sector… and we’re in it! Vocation, Transformation and Hope recommends local churches take an intentional approach to partnering with their local college through chaplaincy or other forms of shared contribution to the life of the community. It’s also recommended that Anglican dioceses build a strategy for FE into their strategic planning, and revitalise a network of paid or voluntary FE development officers – a bit like the WM’s own FE Chaplaincy Ambassador.
You can read a summary and download the full report here.
ROUNDED – Ready for Life is WMCFEC’s new interactive, flexible format resource for exploring key character dispositions with 16-19s. The resource covers six themes common to many religions and worldviews, from a broad Christian perspective, through a 10 minute ineractive PowerPoint film plus a suite of supporting activities that can be tailored to group size, time and space available.
ROUNDED has been created by Simeon Whiting, commissioned by WM Churches’ FE Council and designed by Mazo Creative Agency, with voice work from the Saltmine Theatre Company.
You can download ROUNDED here (link to Google Drive).
Recently 175 people participated in the webinar Chaplaincy, Wellbeing and Faith, with speakers including Dr Justin Varney, Director of Public Health for Birmingham, and Carol Wilson, Head of Spiritual Care for Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust. You can watch the webinar here. Thanks to Paul Chesterman and David Butterworth of Birmingham Methodist District’s Mission in the Economy team, for sharing this. Their latest newsletter also includes a piece from WM FE Chaplaincy Ambassador Phil Metcalf. Sign up for this newsletter by emailing paul.chesterman[at]birminghammethodist.org.uk.