Care
  2. Volunteers Care

Volunteers Care

Program

Lend a hand - Become a pastoral care volunteer

The Volunteers C.A.R.E. initiative consists of Courses Activating volunteers to Respond to the emotional, pastoral and spiritual needs of people Everywhere. The initiative is endorsed as a recognised pastoral care volunteer pathway for the Uniting Church in Australia, Queensland Synod. The initiative is proudly supported by UnitingCare Queensland and Wesley Mission Queensland.

The Volunteers C.A.R.E. initiative consists of a process for recruiting, training, and inducting volunteers for pastoral care in congregational ministry, UnitingCare Queensland hospitals, Blue Care residential aged care homes, Wesley Mission Queensland residential aged care, and Uniting Church Public Hospital Chaplaincy in Queensland.

The training component of the Volunteers C.A.R.E. initiative comprises courses designed to train and equip volunteer pastoral carers. These courses provide the beginnings of a pathway into a variety of pastoral care contexts, primarily in local congregations and/or communities of Christian faith, and into more context-specific pastoral care volunteer roles.

The C.A.R.E. initiative provides volunteers with:

  • A C.A.R.E. Essentials course designed to respond to people’s emotional, pastoral and spiritual needs in any context.
  • A Specialised C.A.R.E. Matters course designed to on-board, train and mentor pastoral care volunteers in Chaplaincy Contributor volunteer frameworks.
  • A volunteer recruitment plan focusing on Uniting Church volunteers by offering relevant pastoral care foundational training applicable to congregation ministry and a pathway for pastoral care volunteer specialisation.
  • A volunteer recruitment plan focusing on Christian denominational volunteers wishing to operate as ecumenical pastoral care volunteers within the UnitingCare Queensland, Wesley Mission Queensland volunteer frameworks and other volunteer recruitment opportunities.

Uniting Church chaplains in specified contexts being active in the recruitment of volunteers, delivery of training for volunteers and the delivery of volunteer orientation and mentoring processes applicable to each context.

The Volunteers CARE Program consists of two distinct courses:

CARE Essentials

What is it?
The CARE Essentials Course is an eight-session course is designed for use in Congregations or Faith Communities and can also become the beginning step on the pathway to more specialised Pastoral Care volunteering in various UCA Chaplaincy settings. The CARE Essentials Course includes an exploration of what Pastoral Care entails and how we can define it, examining why we are involved in Pastoral Care, and some foundational skills needed to get started as a Pastoral Carer.

Aims

The Volunteers CARE Initiative, as a whole, will introduce you to others involved in Pastoral Care in their contexts and will thereby offer a support and resource network, particularly for Congregations.

    • The CARE Essentials Course will help equip people to engage in Pastoral Care in their Congregation or Faith Community.
    • The CARE Essentials Course will provide the basis of possible pathways into more formal qualifications in Pastoral Care or Chaplaincy within the Uniting Church in Australia, Queensland Synod Chaplaincy Commission.
    • The Volunteers CARE Initiative, as a whole, will introduce you to others involved in Pastoral Care in their contexts and will thereby offer a support and resource network, particularly for Congregations.

Time Frame
The CARE Essentials Course consists of eight 90-minute sessions. It can be completed over two full-time (9am-5pm) days or over a longer period if that suits you better. These are:

    • Session 1: Orientation – Preparation for Pastoral Care
    • Session 2: Pastoral Care in Practice
    • Session 3: Introduction to Communication Skills and Active Listening
    • Session 4: Practical Communication and Active Listening Skills
    • Session 5: Suffering, Grief and Loss
    • Session 6: Where is God in this? Introduction to Theological Reflection on Practice
    • Session 7: Recognising and Identifying Pastoral Issues – What’s going on here?
    • Session 8: Self-Care

For more information about what courses are happening in the future and to register for any of these courses, please visit the Volunteers CARE (TryBooking) page – https://www.trybooking.com/eventlist/volunteerscare

CARE Matters

What is it?
CARE Matters is a five-stage orientation, induction, and training program that follows Volunteer CARE Essentials. It extends and contextualises the Christian pastoral care skills covered in the CARE Essentials Course.

CARE Matters is a five-stage program designed for use in Hospitals and Aged Care facilities. The next step (following the CARE Essentials Course) provides a pathway for a participant to volunteer in various Uniting Church in Australia, Qld Synod Chaplaincy settings across the state. The first two stages of CARE Matters consist of Orientation and Induction provided in-house by the Health Service Organisation. The third stage is the Mentoring Guide and the process of supervising and mentoring volunteers. The fourth stage is a session that updates and offers some more advanced training pertaining to the specific contexts of aged care or hospital care. The fifth stage walks the Mentor and Mentee through the practical issues associated with visiting Care Seekers, particularly in institutional settings.

For more information about what courses are happening in the future and to register for any of these courses, please visit the Volunteers CARE (TryBooking) page – https://www.trybooking.com/eventlist/volunteerscare

Volunteers CARE video

Join a community committed to worship, witness and service.

Find a Church

Worship | Youth Ministry (12-18yo) | Kids Ministry (5-11yo) | Weekday Playgroup