Pathways

Our Pathways are designed to help you feel confident and equipped in the places God has called you to at work, at church and in your local community.

You can click on the links below to see the information for each specific Pathway:

What and where has God called you to?

What would you need to feel more confident and equipped in your ministry? Our hope is that we have something for you.

We want to see lay people equipped and released into the ministries God has called them to. This might be in church, at work or in their communities. To support those ministries we have various Pathways that combine learning, practical training and spiritual formation.

You might consider a Pathway as you begin a new ministry or to develop a ministry you are already involved in.

We have six pathways starting or running next year:

Each Pathway combines three strands:

3 Background learning courses	5 session modules that are specific to your Pathway and help you to delve into you understanding of the Bible and your Pathway
5 Practical training sessions	Individual training over the year that focus on the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of what you do.
2 Core trainings sessions	Unconscious Bias and safeguarding training to help us welcome and protect one another.
5 personal formation groups	Joining with others on the Pathways to explore how you, your personality and experiences help you live out your ministry.

The purpose of the Pathways are to support you in your role

So to make them as accessible as possible you can…

Start at any point in the year.
Take a minimum of a year to complete it…or plan it over a longer period.
Sign up to any event or course individually without being on the Pathway. (The formation groups are specific to being on a Pathway)

Why join a pathway?

You can take courses and events individually as you find helpful. What a Pathway adds is being able to grow and develop over time with the support of a spiritual formation group so instead of just investing in your role you are encouraged to consider yourself and your gifts and personal growth alongside the role that you have.

On completion of a Pathway you will receive a Bishop’s Certificate to mark all you have done.

It is also our programme for those following a calling to authorised ministries (such as Lay Readers) and involves completing several Pathways.

How much does it cost?

Each Pathway costs £105. You pay as you book for learning courses (£25 for 5 sessions) and training sessions (£5) each. There is no additional cost for the personal formation group.

In some churches this cost is covered or partially covered by the PCC.

We do not want money to be a barrier to joining the Pathways, so please contact us if finances will make it difficult for you to join in.

I want to join a Pathway

You may have already looked at the Pathway options and know you’d like to join one. You will see the full process on the specific Pathway. The starting point is to discuss with your incumbent and explore the call in that ministry:

If you discern a call together then your incumbent should seek support from the PCC to support you in this ministry. (The cost of the Pathway is sometimes covered in full or partially by the church).
Your incumbent will need to email Anna Naish a short recommendation for you to join the Pathway (copying in the lay minister).
We will then discuss any Pathway options for you to make the most relevant choices for the ministry you are in/starting.

Commissioning: Commissioning lay ministers is a valuable way that people’s calling and competence can be recognised and celebrated. Bishop’s Certificates do not automatically lead to, or follow, commissioning. It is for the incumbent to consider – in partnership with the PCC – whether, and at what stage, a lay minister might be formally commissioned.

Interested? Get in touch.

If you would like more information and/or are interested in joining a Pathway email Anna Naish (Lay Learning and Training Lead).