A Message from the Chaplain

COMMUNITY

A message from the Chaplain

What does a chaplain do at a school? I am sometimes asked this question and I am sure there is a genuine desire to know why a school would choose to have a chaplain. When the Head spoke to the new staff in September, he kindly introduced me as an important person, and then he said ‘Well, actually, he hangs around’. I think this is a good description of much of the life of a school chaplain, to be around the place as a presence ready to listen and to engage with staff and pupils.

I think it a good thing if the chaplain is not too near the centre of things. I mean, is not in a position of the school hierarchy. so that they can sometimes be on the edge of things, because it is often on the edge that they will find people who are in need. ‘Yes, but what do you actually do?’ Well, a good deal of the time it is about listening. There is a real value in having someone who is given the time to be available to listen to the stories of others. To take seriously the joys and sorrows of those who come to tell you how it is for them. So often people think that what they are worried about is not important enough to bother the chaplain with, however, if it hurts it hurts and that is enough. The young child from the junior school who has lost their grandparent, the Year 11 pupil who is finding it hard to keep up in a subject, the sixth former who has lost a good friend. There is a real therapeutic value in saying out loud how they are feeling and sharing the options they can see from where they are. Sometimes words are not necessary and to have a quiet discreet place where staff and students can simply sit and reflect or become calm is a real gift. A place where there is no pressure to talk or explain but just the invitation to rest a while in peace. To be about the school to ask after a student who has not been well, to congratulate someone who played in the school orchestra the previous evening, to wish good luck to someone about to take an exam – such things will not be undertaken only by the chaplain of course but there is certainly a ministry of encouragement in many areas of school life. And then there are the moments when the whole community celebrates or perhaps reflects on events concerning the world or sometimes more specifically the school. It is often the chaplain who will lead such moments or certainly play a part. Again, it is about a sense of belonging that leads us to want to share joy or be there for others in sorrow. All this is a privilege, and I am very conscious of that as I am touched by so many people and share so many important moments in their lives.

The Reverend Canon Colin Luke Boswell

Chaplain of School