Church Worker Support
About us
Our church needs workers who are equipped, knowledgeable and supported as they undertake mission and ministry across Australia and New Zealand. The Church Worker Support Department serves the church by assisting employing and calling bodies to work towards seeing that their church workers can start well, stay well and finish well.
How we serve
We are developing policies and procedures, in consultation with church entities, to establish good service management practices. We can help parishes and congregations contextualise these in their unique mission and ministry settings. We can best support parishes and congregations by visiting and getting to know them. It is wonderful to support and encourage them to continue the practices that are working well. As we serve your church, we can provide resources, and we are happy to work together with you to develop other resources that will enable church workers to grow and go as God’s people. We are adding to these resources all the time, so please ask us how we can help you.
Starting well
Getting off to a good start is important in any ministry context. Good commencement practices can establish shared understandings and enable people serving your church to feel confident in their new environment. With our resources, we assist you with:
- things to consider before employing someone
- recruitment and selection processes
- developing position or role descriptions – including for volunteer positions
- induction processes
- employment and onboarding-related documentation
- making the most of the LCA Human Resource System (HRS).
Staying well
Once people are off to a good start, it is equally important to support them throughout their ministry and service. Staying well involves things like ensuring safe workplaces, facilitating good interpersonal relationships between teams, and providing opportunities for growth and development, through to supporting people in challenging times.
We are continuing to develop additional resources, and we can assist
you with:
- vocational development planning and recording
- performance development reviews
- Continuing Education for Pastors (CEP) program
- ministry reviews
- establishing and supporting team ministry
- managing unsatisfactory performance
- finding your unique SHAPE (spiritual gifts and other measures)
- pastoral care support practices for church workers.
Finishing well
Finishing well is also important, regardless of the reason, whether people
are are leaving a role or leaving the church. We can assist you with:
- exit interviews
- considerations during a pastoral vacancy
- making positions redundant
- terminations of employment
- employment transfers.
Church Worker Support
churchworkersupport@lca.org.au
08 8267 7300