April 2010 Archives

I am playing in a mens group squash competition on Monday! It's been a wee while* since I last played but it's not my lack of recent practice that worries me (although it probably should). My question is this: Can I turn up with my wooden squash racquet? AND will I be the only one still equipped with round headed wooden framed one?

*about 20 years in fact BUT hey how much can your forget/change in a fifth of a century

CAPTAINS LOG SUPPLEMENTAL: Well I turned up with my racquet (a much loved 18th birthday present) and it did cause some amusement, particularly from the teenagers! Someone kindly offered me the used of a more modern racquet assuming that there would be some sort of advantage conferred by the fact it was so much lighter, had twice the stringed surface areas and a square edge that coped with corners better.

And did it make a difference? OH YES!!
Am definitely going to be getting me one of these new fangled ones!

PS: For Sale: Wooden squash racquet. Would suit antique collector or sports museum

CAPTAINS LOG SUPPLEMENTAL, SUPPLEMENTAL: Note so self, don't play 3 matches next time: My body has rejected me, I ache all over and someone has injected rapid set concrete into my quads. urgh agggh

I wrote a while back about the confusion when it comes to the words "children" and "youth" and the different and conflicting definitions being applied, particularly when policy and general conversation are using the terms differently. (Article here)

However, new layers of confusion also arise with terms given to those who work with children/youth/young people. There already exists some fluidity in what constitutes a 'youth worker' but this could get even more complex in the whole arena of integrated childrens services/work force with anyone who does some work with young people being seen as a youth worker. All good in some ways but it starts to neuter the value/skills of those who are skilled in youth work (be they volunteer or employed) as opposed to delivering a specific service in one arena of work with young people.

There is a current proposal that fully qualified youth workers should be known as "youth work professionals" (CYPN report from Ross Watson April 20th 2010) to maintain a recognition of the skills and training of a JNC youth worker as opposed to someone who is working with young people ('children' in policy speak) but in a specific role.

We of course have further work to be done on what Youth ministry means in terms of the role it has and the skill set it requires from both voluntary and employed workers.

So, in summary: Reading the policies and practices and in this changing landscape there is a great deal of emphasis on working with young people BUT in any given circumstance there may be a great deal of confusion about the age group that is being worked with AND by whom and on what basis.

I am setting up Of-Confused as the monitoring body

The winner will face Ubuntu Cola in the next round

I'm trying to track down a 2nd hand open ('Canadian') canoe* at the moment but they are quite hard to come by. If you happen to hear of one for sale can you give me a shout, ta :-)

*not abandoned kayaking, its just the rest of the family want to join me and my daughter out on the water

Its not often that the Youthblog radar picks up a story that comes in on the 'teenage' frequency and simultaneously through the 'shed' early warning system, but it has happened. Apparently sales of REALLY pukka sheds are up as people look for an additional room that doesn't need planning permission, these are often to give teenagers their own space. Story here

I'm rather chuffed with this as I'm an early adopter for once, my daughter has a den in the garden. Mind you, it's built entirely from recycled material and the only cost I can recall was £1 spent on cable ties .... and hence not even close to the top 100 good looking sheds list.

I'm also chuffed that a whole generation are being inducted into sheddiness.

I'd like to define a new word for the shed as teen only space. I'm calling this a 'dennel'
You saw it here first!! (and possibly for the last time)

Our Safeguarding guru produced a one slide guide to ISA, it looks like this

Set up after the Soham murders and Bichard report
All children's workers must register, starting with new entrants and job changers
Extra box on Criminal Records Bureau application form
Registration is permanent and portable
Criminal Records Bureau checks are still required
Offenders against children and others found dangerous are removed from register and put on a barred list

On Radio 2 at the weekend I heard the ABC quoted as saying, "we shall not find life by refusing to let go of our precious, protected selves"

I thought it was a great piece of spiritual wisdom and challenge, well communicated. I brief trawl on google tracked the context down to a sermon in 2005. I'm putting it here so I can find it again, and in case it grabs you too!

As usual for a Saturday, the tribe gathered around the Computer the moment that the latest Dr Who became available on the BBC i-player. It was a corker of an episode registering a full 3 cushions on the scariness scale as I observed from watching my youngest son.
The great thing was though that, the episode "The Time of Angels" turned out to be a 51st Century vision of the clergy, in particular that of Episcopal leadership. The gun carrying, combat wearing unit brought in to contain the threat were 'brothers' led not by a Commanding officer, but by the Bishop.

*note that link will only work in the UK

St Oswald's Church, Sowerby, Thirsk, North Yorkshire is seeking to employ a Children and Young People's Development Worker to co-ordinate, facilitate and develop the church's work amongst children and young people.

18.5 hours per week to include some evenings, weekends, and occasional nights away from home. advert St Oswalds C and YP Dev Worker April 2010.doc

Also:

"The Diocese of Lincoln has developed an exciting new strategy for its work with young people and needs people of talent and experience to help implement it. The context of this role, working within a team of three people, is hugely varied, including London commuter towns and villages, wolds, fens and substantial industrial and commercial towns" Details here

Riding Lights Roughshod theatre company are in the Oxfordshire area next week and have a few spare evenings, those of:

Tuesday 27th April
Wednesday 28th April
Thursday 29th April or
Saturday 1st May

They are available, In their words ....

"In the evenings the company will be free to offer a number of workshops which focus on issues closer to self esteem, forgiveness, aspiration and relationships to any students aged 11 upwards.

This is a long shot due to time constraints but we would love to offer input to any events that might be taking place during the week - there is no cost to the work that the team offers and it would be a shame to miss them if there is space on a youth programme to fit them in!"

Contact me for more details

In a meeting this morning someone asked the question, "what does Collaborate really mean? In the absence of anyone else answering I explained that it was an effective joint process whereby rather than just getting on and llaborating, you llaborated as a team together ..... and thus achieved co-llaboration.

This is part of my strategy for not being invited to meetings:-)

(in case you wondered, 'elaborate' is to laborate at length using a computer, you'll further notice this is the Anglicised version, not the welsh twin 'l' rendered llaborate)

PS Etymology is twice as much fun when you just make it up

With the new Director of the department in place I have my old life back, yay! and am free to be 100% gainfully engaged with matters Diocesanly Youthesque. Having said that though there is plenty to keep me busy, especially the Youth strategy I am charged with delivering.

But all work and no play makes Ian a very dull boy SO I've put some energy into what carpe-ing the diem might look like over the next few months. Landscaping the garden will continue and the recent addition of a fountain to the pond has added to the mellowness; however my battle with the pigeons to sow Grass seed faster than they can eat is seeing me on the losing side at the moment :-(
I'm also VERY excited that I'm on a 2 day Sea Kayak Course in June in North Devon. In addition there's a Snowdon expedition, a chance to call in to the Lake District before a conference in the North West and a couple of cool cycle rides I'm booked into in Oxfordshire and the New Forest.

Life is good, and I have no work commitments this weekend at all so a proper full on family weekend awaits.

Here's a Youth Work story that made me smile. A youth trip that went pear shaped when the Youth Worker got her finger stuck in the bowling ball (ouch!) and had to be cut free at the Fire Station.

Definitely a new column for the Ten Pin bowling risk assesment

Confession time! I am really excited that the release of Iron Man 2 is near. I cannot wait to see it, it looks AWESOME!

This is great news for/from the Scouts who have seen a massive increase in membership and in particular among teenagers. This is impressive stuff, especially given that there was some doubt back in the 90's whether uniformed organisations were still able to be relevant.

I'm sure Bear Grylls has played a recent part in this but there is obviously a huge attraction to what Scouts have to offer.

BBC article here
My congratulations to any Scout leaders who read this :-)

Details here :-)

My daughter has been messing around on flip book. You are limited to 100 frames on the free version hence how short it is. This is one of hers that amused me

The main point of posting it though was that it could be a really cool way of designing a catchy piece of publicity to embed on your web sites. Have fun :-)

My Lifeguard qualification has lapsed and I have been unable to find a course (so far) that runs before the Yellow Braces camp. My other Lifeguard (hello KT) is similarly between qualification renewals (they only last 2 years). EEK

1. Is anyone out there a qualified (RLSS UK or NARS PL) Lifeguard and free from July 9th - 11th (and willing to come to camp)?

4. Is your local pool advertising a course at the moment you can point me to?

Does anyone know if 'Youth work the Conference' nee Brainstormers is happening? (I'm getting the impression not). I think the Lee Abbey Youth Ministry conference isn't happening, Matrix is long dead.

Where are Youth workers/ministers gathering to talk theology and practice?

I'm assuming the 'Bible Based Youth work conference' will be on again in 2011? and hopefully Soulnet but the opportunities for mutual learning and encouragement seem to be considerably less.

I can't believe Easter has come and gone but that it has, back at the desk and busy being Diocesan, Youthy and Adviserish. I was fortunate enough to have the weekend off and although I would have liked to have sneaked off to visit the Easter Vigil at the Abbey, I had promised my family I wouldn't be working, and thus didn't.

The new Doctor Who was utterly brilliant, although I was obviously deeply shocked that the 11th Doctors first landing involved obliterating a shed ;-)
The weather down our way was less than clement which seriously got in the way of landscaping and especially the building of some concrete steps, took the chance to deck a mud patch at the front of the house though.

Also did Church, visited the Outlaws in Wales and did more house clearing in Birmingham!
All good!

Christ has died
Christ is risen
Christ will come again

Chocolate, Faith, hope and the promise of Life to the Full

(I had fun writing the April fool below so I think I'll leave it in the archives rather than deleting it)

It looks very much like a form of ordination is going to happen for all youth ministers who work in or through Anglican churches. This surprise move is in response to the move by local and central government to an intergration of the 'children's workforce' across the statutory and voluntary (including faith) sector.

The CWDC guidelines which are now published would have meant that all Parish employed youth workers would have been drawn into time consuming multi agency planning, training and delivery leaving the actual Youth Ministry aspect of the job with considerably less time. The opt outs (as you can see) are few but work at a governmental policy level with the mainstream denominations has meant that ministers will be exempt.

This led Synod to pass a motion (Folio: PrAL 1) that allows for the partial ordination of all PCC employed youth worker/ministers (working 75% of the time or more through Anglican structures), and thus will maintain the freedom to work and minister freely and independently in their communities.

Youth workers would be required to wear ecclesial dog collars but the training requirements will be kept to a minimum, namely 4 modules over the two years after ordination:

Liturgical Patterns and worship
Messianic patterns and themes within Leviticus
Churchyard and building law
Adopting a preaching voice

This move (although pragamatic and freeing) is expected to meet with some criticism from youth workers ... and also from churches at both the catholic and evangelical ends of the spectrum. The formal announcement of this, scheduled for the morning of April 1st is expected to be quite a surprise and has the danger of being viewed as some sort of joke.

It looks like orange will be the generic colour for youth minister's clerical shirts as this has no specific allegiance or collegiate link at the moment. (It is envisioned that Youth Ministers will be under no obligation or expectation to robe though).

A web site has been set up here which should be a first port of call with anxieties or concerns about the process and implications.