Pastoral Care Policy
Pastoral care plays an important role in the life of the church. With many activities and ministries going on there is the potential for provision of pastoral care to be missed. We want to provide a supporting, caring community, willing to help those when they need it.
There may need to be a certain degree of flexibility required from situation to situation, that can largely vary from very practical support to emotional spiritual support. There will be also be situations where someone from a trained or professional background will be better (or in some cases legally) placed to respond to situations.
What is Pastoral Care?
A broad, but not definitive definition would be:
To care, support. To demonstrate unconditional love, acceptance and encouragement. Bringing hope, biblical truth and practical advice. Being present with, listening to and journeying alongside. Reflecting Jesus, sharing burdens and praying for those in our care.
Pastoral care can vary from being very practical in nature (eg, meals, shopping) to spiritual/emotional (eg, prayer, listening).
Who can access support?
We would love to provide Pastoral Care to all that seek it out, but we also have to be mindful of our resources, both as a church and as people.
Anyone that is considered a regular part of the church community can contact their small group leader, team coordinator or any staff/leadership team directly in the office where arrangements can be made.
If someone seeks out pastoral care who is not part of the church or does not engage within the church community (or very minimally), we will try to offer care according to the resources we have. Consideration will also be given to whether sign posting to a more appropriate form of support is a better option.
Expectations
Pastoral care is very different to therapeutic or clinical interventions and our team will only be able to support you in line with their own understanding and expertise.
Unless someone is at imminent risk of harm, information will remain confidential to the person/people providing pastoral support and the Pastoral Care Team.
Our Safeguarding and Health and Safety Policies will be followed at all times. This includes the requirement of those working with Under 18’s and Vulnerable Adults to have DBS checks.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch by clicking the ‘Email Us’ link below.