National Charter for Youth Workers
Spring: chocka with fresh greenery, wonderful blooms, the odd Christian festival and now to add to that mix a lovely new charter for youth workers. Seven great ideas that your church can sign up to make your youth worker grow and blossom as fresh and as pretty as a daffodil.
What are those seven ideas, those seven 'pledges' if you like, I hear you ask? Well let me oblige - just add 'for our youth worker' 'with our youth worker' as appropriate:
- We will pray and support
- We will give space for retreat and reflection
- We will provide ongoing training and development
- We will give a full day of rest each week
- We will share responsibility
- We will strive to be an excellent employer
- We will celebrate and appreciate
Now if I've got my theology right I believe that seven, after 3 of course, is the biggest magic number and there's an awful lot of magic in this charter.
For instance Youth Workers, when asked, what is the one thing that could make your job not easier but better, often say improved working relationships with church leadership.
The charter provides an excellent opportunity for churches to begin to create greater role clarity in terms of youth workers understanding their role and churches understanding how youth work fits into the bigger picture.
And from my experience of church leadership maintaining good lines of communication so that the role expectations of the youth worker and church leadership remain in harmony is vital. As is having a job description that isn't over ambitious or vague but does give a youth worker the opportunity to develop the role, at least to a degree, along the lines of their particular giftings or passions.
But enough from me, get yourself over to the website and find out how your church can get involved.
Jason Gardner
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