CRCW Conversation

Church Related Community Work Conversation

A conversation between two church members in Runcorn about a Church Related Community Worker and the work she’s involved with.
It illustrates some of the practicalities involved with community development work and the changes that can occur…

Paul: Morning Claire.

Claire: Hello again, Paul.

Paul: It’s been a while since we talked about how Alison’s getting on: so, is she living up to your expectations yet?

Claire: (hesitantly) Um….well…. Yes, I suppose so.

Paul: You don’t sound very convinced about it!

Claire: Well, the thing is, my expectations have changed. When she
first came I think we were all hoping for something a bit more…. a bit more ……

P: Spectacular? Immediate? Life-changing? Exciting?

C: Yes! All of those things!

P: So you thought she’d be the answer to all your problems?
(Looking round as if to assess the number of problems still
around) I can see that must have been a big disappointment!

C: I think at first people were disappointed, and confused,
because she didn’t really seem to be doing anything. She spent all her time watching and listening and just chatting to people, and we wanted action!

P: And what about now? Is she doing anything now?

C: Oh yes! In fact, now I can see that she was doing
something all along. It’s just that it has taken time to see the results.

P: So what was she doing that you hadn’t noticed?

C: Well, nothing! She was doing exactly what I said:- watching, listening, chatting to people. The difference is, now I realise how important that was, and still is!

P: How can chatting to people be important? I mean, it’s very nice and all that, but it’s not exactly work, is it?!?

C: Yes, it is! For one thing, you can’t find out what people are hoping for, what their needs are, without watching and listening and talking to them, and for another you can’t expect people to take risks and do things they wouldn’t normally do unless they know you and trust you.

P: Take risks?!? What are you talking about? She’s a community worker, not an arctic explorer! What risks are there in that?

C: Oh, people have taken plenty of risks, believe me. What counts as a risk depends on what makes you feel apprehensive. Volunteering at the Holiday Club can feel like a very big risk, and so can even just chatting to some of the lads who hang around outside. It all depends on what you’re used to.

P: I see what you mean….. The Holiday Clubs have turned out to be quite popular, haven’t they?

C: Oh yes, they’re a great success, and lots of fun!

P: Is that what you meant when you said she’s living up to your expectations now:- that things have finally started to happen, even though on a smaller scale than we’d hoped?

C: No, not at all! I thought I’d explained, things were happening all along. I’ve learnt to look for different signs of change, that’s all.

P: What do you mean? Either things have changed, or they haven’t!

C: But even subtle changes can be very significant.

P: True enough. Give me some examples of the subtle changes, then.

C: Well, for example, I think the attitude within the churches has changed. When we first started the community newsletter it was hard work getting fifteen hundred delivered, and now we do three-and-a-half thousand several times a year, because lots more people have volunteered to help.

P: Yes, the newsletters are a good way of publicising our events, and just letting people know we exist, aren’t they? What else?

C: Well, here at Bethesda we’re taking better care of our buildings. Of course, it’s a great help not having to spend half our time clearing up broken tiles from the Lapwing Centre roof, and there’s a lot less graffiti, and the garden and car park look much more cared for…..

P: That hardly counts as community work!

C: Oh, you’d be surprised! Showing we care about our building and grounds makes so much difference to other people’s attitude, too. Do you know, some of the young people who used to hang around outside thought it was just a derelict building, because it looked so neglected, and they’d never seen anyone going in and out.

P: So now they respect it, just because you’ve cut the grass! Pull the other one!

C: There’s more to it than that, of course. It’s also because we respect them. We talk to them. Some of them come to the Holiday Club, or Genesis or TNT during the week, or Drop In after school. They know the building isn’t derelict now, because they use it themselves, and they know some of the people, too.

P: So people in the churches are more willing to take risks and volunteer for things, the buildings look a bit more cared for, though I have to say only someone who’d seen them before would really be able to appreciate that, and the local children have a better attitude to the place and have even been inside. Great. I bet they don’t come on Sundays, though!

C: Oh, I was waiting for that one! Church is about so much more than Sunday. At least now they trust us, and feel comfortable asking us questions. They feel connected to us – we’re part of their community, and they make the connections between the assemblies Sue and Kristy do in their schools, the Drop In, the Holiday Clubs and Fun Days. They know that all those things belong together, as a way of life.

P: Well, that all sounds very good, but what about the adults? What about all the community groups who were supposed to be using the Lapwing Centre to help pay for all the work with children and young people. They haven’t materialised, have they?

C: No, it’s true that the Lapwing doesn’t get used as much as we would like. Some groups have tried it and moved on, others use it on an occasional basis, and of course we use it ourselves, but there’s plenty of scope for more people to use it, certainly.

P: Because we need the money!

C: No! Because it’s a useful community resource!

P: You mean we don’t need the money?????

C: Well, of course, it would be nice to have a little extra, but actually our finances are quite healthy at the moment.

P: So that’s another way in which Alison hasn’t fulfilled our expectations! We were all afraid she’d cost us lots of money and we’d struggle to keep the project funded! But I suppose if she doesn’t do much, of course she doesn’t cost much!!!!!

C: Have you been listening to anything I’ve said? She doesn’t do what we expected, but actually, taken over the time she’s been here, the results have been pretty much what you said at the beginning: life-changing, exciting – it’s just that they’ve been gradual and subtle rather than immediate and spectacular.

P: Oh well, I suppose you can’t have everything! (Wanders off, leaving Claire looking frustrated for a moment. Then she leaves, too.)