LEVEL 4 FOUNDATIONCERTIFICATES

in

Christian Youthwork

or Christian Children and Family Work‡

in churches, schools and community settings


Formation Requirements and additional assessment for CYM Foundation Certificates for work with Children, Families and Young People for students undertaking a CYM Pathway within Common Awards at level 4.

‡Including SkillsActivePlaywork CPD points

Table of Contents

GLOSSARY OF TERMS...... 4

SECTION 1: MINISTERIAL FORMATION...... 5

INTRODUCTION...... 5

MINISTERIAL COMPETENCE...... 5

ACADEMICAND MINISTERIALBENCHMARKS...... 6

ATTAINING AN CYM FOUNDATIONCERTIFICATE...... 6

CYM MINISTERIAL ENDORSEMENT BOARD...... 6

SECTION 2: LEARNING CONTEXTS AND RELATIONSHIPS...... 7

THE LEARNINGAGREEMENT...... 7

THE TEI (THEOLOGICAL EDUCATION INSTITUTION)...... 7

CONTEXTUAL FORMATION GROUP...... 7

MINISTERIAL PRACTICE TUTOR...... 8

THE MAIN PRACTICE AGENCY...... 9

THE LINE MANAGER...... 9

SPIRITUAL MENTOR...... 10

THE STUDENT...... 10

SECTION 3: MINISTERIAL FORMATION PROCESS...... 11

SECTION 4: LEVEL 4 PATHWAYS: CERT HE THEOLOGY, MISSION MINISTRY...... 12

SECTION 5: MINISTERIAL FORMATION SUBMISSION...... 13

THE MINISTERIAL FORMATION SUBMISSION...... 13

INTEGRATIVE TASK...... 13

CERTIFICATION DECISIONS...... 14

SECTION 6: CONTACT HOURS AND MINISTERIAL PRACTICE EXPERIENCE...... 15

PRACTICE HOURS: YOUTH WORK...... 15

PRACTICE HOURS: CHILDREN AND FAMILY WORK...... 15

TIMESHEETS...... 15

SECTION 7: GOOD PRACTICE ISSUES...... 16

ATTENDANCE...... 16

SAFEGUARDING...... 16

ABUSE OFTRUST...... 16

CONFLICT OF INTEREST...... 17

CONFIDENTIALITY...... 17

DISCIPLINARY ISSUES...... 17

SECTION 8: PRACTICE MEETINGS...... 18

THE INTIAL PRACTICE MEETING...... 18

MID-YEAR PRACTICE MEETING...... 18

FINAL PRACTICE MEETING...... 18

APPENDIX 1: ACADEMIC, PROFESSIONAL AND MINISTERIAL BENCHMARKING FOR CYM FOUNDATION CERTIFICATE IN CHRISTIAN CHILDREN AND FAMILY WORK 20

SECTION 9: APPENDICES...... 20

APPENDIX 2: ACADEMIC, PROFESSIONAL AND MINISTERIAL BENCHMARKING FOR CYM FOUNDATION CERTIFICATE IN CHRISTIAN YOUTH WORK

SECTION 10: KEY CONTACT INFORMATION...... 28

This glossary is designed to help you become familiar with the terminology used within CYM professional practice modules.

Ministerial Formation / The development of the whole person, their attitudes and dispositions, as well as ministerial and academic competence.
Ministerial Competence / Knowledge, understanding and skills as evident in ministerial practice, that dialogues with theology, faith, self, context, good-practice, and professional principles and values.
Ministerial Formation Submission / The folder of work submitted by the student for the certificate.
Main Practice Agency / The church or organisation in which the student undertakes the majority of their practice during the course.
Main Agency Line Manager (LM) / The person in the main agency who oversees the student’s work in the agency and meets regularly with them to discuss this.
Contextual Tutor Groups (CTG) / Small groups, which meet to contextualise subject knowledge within ministerial practice, and help develop students’ understanding and skills in practice.
Ministerial Practice Tutor (PT) / A qualified and experienced professional who meets with the student regularly to assist them in their learning and professional and ministerial development. In this handbook this person is referred to as the ‘Practice Tutor’.
Practice Meetings / Meetings between the student, the Line Manager and the Ministerial Practice Tutor during the period study for the Foundation Certificate.
TEI / Theological Education Institute. This is the primary location of study for students on a CYM pathway.
Director of Studies (DOS) / Person responsible for delivery of the course including support of students. The DOS is located within the TEI.
CYM Faculty / Core CYM pathway tutors located in the TEI


The Institute for Children, Youth and Mission (CYM) understands the motive of those working with children, families, young people and communities to be defined by a sense of fulfilling their God-given vocation. All kinds of approaches and methods may be used within the work, but these are situated in an understanding of God’s love and purpose.

Our values are based on CYM’s biblical foundation and on professional principles. We are committed to love, relationship, equality of opportunity, choice, respect, freedom, responsibility, wholeness and justice. CYM educational experience is designed to encourage the development of the whole person, their attitudes and dispositions, as well as professional, ministerial and academic competence. The aim of ministerial formation is to develop the skills, knowledge and attitudes that will enable a student to gain recognition for their vocational context and specialism.

As a student it is our aim that you grow and develop across the following dimensions, through the range of learning experiences made available whilst you are a student on the CYM endorsed pathway in your regional college (TEI).

As a student, you will engage in reflective practice and will be encouraged to integrate your learning from your taught modules, your own reading, theological reflection, professional and ministerial practice, feedback from supervisors and peers, and your own spiritual life into the process of preparing material for the PMF Submission. This submission will be submitted to the CYM Endorsement Board for the purposes of endorsement and/or certification.


Ministerial competence relates to knowledge and skills in practice. As such it is in integral component of ministerial formation. By the end of the Foundation level (Year 1 or equivalent) students will be expected to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the competences and to apply them in a range of contexts. This will include non-routine tasks and some individual responsibility and autonomy. They will assist with a range of duties including collaborative tasks, development of volunteers, project development and sharing information with other agencies, even though these are not directly assessed at this level. They will demonstrate a commitment to ministerial principles and values.

CYM COMPETENCE FRAMEWORK

Christian Children and Family Work (Playwork) / Christian Youth Work
  • Competence 1 Values, Principles andPractice
  • Competence 2 Building PurposefulRelationships
  • Competence 3 Play, Creativity andInformal Learning
  • Competence 4 Communities&Contexts
  • Competence 5 Leadership &Management
/
  • Competence 1 Values, Principles andPractice
  • Competence 2 Building PurposefulRelationships
  • Competence 3 Learning and InformalEducation
  • Competence 4 Communities&Contexts
  • Competence 5 Leadership &Management

The focus of ministerial practice at Level 4 is on the first three of these as indicated above, but you should also be aware of your practice and development in the other three competences, as they relate and intersect. Development and assessment for a Foundation Certificate is focused on the development of these, and assessed through the framework set out in


Overall, the criteria used as a benchmark to assess holistic ministerial formation for the CYM Foundation Certificates are:

  • Common Awards Learning Outcomes for Cert HE Theology, Mission andMinistry
  • Denominational Lay Ministry Formation Criteria (Phase 1 orEquivalent)
  • National Occupational Standards for Playwork Levels 3 and4
  • National Occupational Standards for Youth & Community Work (Youth SupportWorker)
  • QAA Subject Benchmarks for Youth & Community Work(2009)

These external benchmarks combine in different ways to represent either the Certificate in Christian Children and Family Work, or Youth Work. Please refer to appendix 1 and 2 for mapping against the above benchmarks.


The attainment of an CYM Foundation Certificate is dependent on:

  • Successful completion of an acceptable modular pathway through Common Awards modules, as detailed in Section 3 of thishandbook
  • Attendance and participation in the learning contexts and relationships as provided by the TEI to the requiredlevel
  • Satisfactory engagement with the processes outlined in this handbook in Section 4 of this handbook,and
  • Submission of work as detailed in Section 5 of thishandbook


The CYM Ministerial Endorsement Board (MEB) is a formal board of CYM and acts as gatekeeper for recognition of and the awarding of ministerial certification. Members of this board represent field-based and vocational specialisms, and review students' formation in relation to those fields of ministry, mission and ministerial practice.

The process of engaging in learning and development within and across these contexts, and the integration of them, is fundamental to your engaging in the ministerial formation process.

  • Classroom and/or online based lectures and seminars through the TEI orequivalent
  • Contextual TutorGroups (CTGs)
  • PracticeTutorials
  • Work based/context based learning in practiceagencies
  • Practice meetings with your practice tutor and your agency linemanager
  • Collective worship, retreat and privateprayer


Acceptance of an offer to study on a CYM endorsed pathway with Common Awards, or to act as the Professional Practice Agency for a student undertaking the CYM endorsed Pathway within Common Awards, constitutes a learning agreement between the student, the main agency and the CYM faculty.

The learning agreement represents a duty to fulfill the following roles and responsibilities in relation to students’ learning:


Nominated CYM faculty staff at the TEI will oversee ministerial formation and students will be told who their first point of contact is.

TEI’s are responsible for:

  • Providing classes and tutorial groups for all modules within your Common Awardspathway
  • Access to all library, IT and tutorial resources asrequired.
  • Learning Support and Advice, including specific learning needs assessment, and the provision of reasonable adjustment in line withthis.
  • Approving practice agencies, tutors and line managers; providing information, confirming financial arrangements and induction forthem.
  • Supporting students, agencies and tutors to meet the courserequirements.
  • Dealing with any issues (disciplinary, academic and pastoral) that arise concerning students’ programme ofstudy.

All students will be part of a Contextual Tutor Group (CTG). The arrangements for these varies between TEIs but they will consist of between 4 and 10 students and will meet for the equivalent of 20 hours over the period of study for the foundation certificate. CTGs run alongside taught modules, according to

arrangements in the TEI and provide a vital context for the integration and contextualisation subject knowledge within the students practice context.

Their purpose is to:

  • Assist and encourage to contextualise subject knowledge and understanding in relation to their practice
  • Facilitate experiential learning about developmental groupwork, and issues of power and equality in learning settings, and the transfer of this understanding to practice with young people and/or children.
  • Focus on the competences in the foundation certificate, and contribute to the MF Submission (See Section5)
  • Develop peer support andsupervision
  • Provide a safe space to discuss theory, practice andtheology
  • Develop understanding of Christian professionalpractice
  • Give opportunity to demonstrate basic skills which can contribute to module assessments and/or provide evidence of practice (e.g. presentations, leading prayer, reflection or worship, facilitating an activity/discussion or taking responsibility for co-coordinating the sessionetc).

Students are expected to gradually take on more responsibility for the running of the group as the course progresses, modeling increasing participation and empowerment.

Tutors will negotiate the agenda of the group and provide appropriate resources to facilitate the group within CYM’s guidelines. The role of the CTG Tutor is to facilitate the students’ learning from the experience of working together, reflecting on the tasks undertaken and on the process of becoming a group.

All students will be assigned a Practice Tutor who will have considerable ministerial experience within the relevant field and is normally practicing within a ministry context at a senior level. The practice tutor helps the student reflect on practice and assist putting together their assessed Basic Skills submission and their MF Submission. Students normally meet with their practice tutor for the equivalent of nine hours over the period of study for the Foundation Certificate, but the pattern and focus of these meetings may vary between TEIs.

Practice tutors are responsible for:

  • Meeting the student regularly each term for tutorials to support their learning and development as a Christian worker
  • Completing the tutorial feedback form for theTEI
  • Attending regional parity meetings asrequired
  • Communicating to the Director of Studies any concerns or issues regarding the student’s work or the course, as they arise

Students work with their TEI to choose a suitable main agency, which will be the focus of the student’s practical work with young people. The Main Agency Application Form must be submitted and the agency approved by the TEI before the student starts their studies.

The main practice agency will normally be a Christian children, family, youth and/or community work project, school, Christian organisation or church. ‘Christian’ means the agency either subscribes to the Apostles' Creed or has the promotion of the Christian religion as one of its charitable aims.

Practice agencies are required to:

  • Provide opportunity for students to develop their ministerial practice and experience in all the competence, including the required number of practice hours, with the specified age range as indicated in Appendix 1 (Children and Family) or 2 (YouthWork).
  • Evidence appropriate policies and procedures including the TEI’s Equal Opportunities Policy and Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures and agency-specific Health and Safety and Safeguarding or Child Protection Policies that meet legal and insurance requirements (eg Employer’s Liability and Public Liabilityinsurance).
  • Pay the agency fees as required by theTEI.
  • Meet the student’s travel costs to the TEI, tutorials and Contextual FormationGroups.
  • Cover all work-relatedexpenses.
  • Provide a support structure for the student’s personal, social and spiritual development, including regular supervision with a Line Manager and an independent person to provide pastoral and spiritual support.

The Role of the Main Agency Line Manager is a vital one as they serve as the key supervisor for the student within the agency. Line Managers will take part in an induction programme and be supported by the TEI. They are responsible for:

  • Attending the induction session at the TEI or ensuring someone else qualified does so on theirbehalf
  • Obtaining a satisfactory DBS Disclosure on the student and returning the Safeguarding Confirmation Form to theTEI
  • Organising and overseeing the student’s induction into theagency
  • Managing and supervising the student’s work for theagency
  • Ensuring that the work programme enables the student to fulfil thecompetences
  • Meeting regularly with the student, usually at least once a fortnight and signing the student’s completedtimesheets
  • Contributing to the assessment and formation of the student and their suitability for CYM Endorsed Foundation Certificate through observation andappraisal
  • Releasing students to attend all coursecommitments
  • Communicating to the TEI any concerns or issues regarding the student's work or the course, as they arise

Practice agencies must ensure that students can meet regularly with an independent person for pastoral and spiritual support. The arrangements should be agreed between the student and the agency but we suggest the following guidelines:

  • The person should be independent of the students’ supervision structure and normal working teams. Sometimes it is beneficial for the student to meet with someone outside the agency.
  • They should have appropriate skills and supervision to offer pastoral and spiritualsupport.
  • The relationship is confidential, subject to usual Safeguardingprocedures.
  • Regular meetings are held to develop a relationship that supports the student throughout the course.
  • This support is not used just when there is a crisis or to influence the assessment process but should be seen as an essential aspect of the student’s on-goingdevelopment.


Students are expected to behave professionally in their agencies and in all learning contexts and relationships.

As a student you are responsible for:

  • Identifying your own main agency and liaising with TEI to ensure that this agency meets the appropriate criteria
  • Attending residential teaching, teaching blocks, practice tutorials and Contextual FormationGroups
  • Liaising with your practice tutor and setting up tutorials, observations and 3-waymeetings
  • Submitting work regularly and punctually before tutorials as agreed with your practicetutor
  • Setting up your shadowing experience and alternative agencies in consultation with your practice tutor, line manager and TEIstaff
  • Alerting your line manager, practice tutor and TEI of any sickness, issues or difficulties affecting your work
  • Acting in accordance with agency and TEI policies and procedures and behaving professionally in all learning contexts andrelationships
  • Making good use of the supervision and support offered through the agency andTEI.

You can fail ministerial endorsement if you:

  • Do not attend or are late to TEI teaching days, practice tutorials or Contextual Formation Group meetings, without professionalreasons.
  • Fail to submit work to the practice tutor asagreed.
  • Fail to adhere to agency and/or TEI values, expectations, policies andprocedures.
  • Do not communicate professionally with or within the agency or theTEI.
  • Demonstrate a lack of integrity.
  • In serious cases students may be suspended fromstudies.

Semester 1

  • Complete a Personal Formation Plan (PFP).
  • Undertake the Initial Skills Audit - Self-Appraisal against Level 4 Skills in Practice Competence.
  • Participate in tutorials.
  • Collate materials as required for the Basic Skills module.
  • Participate in the initial practice meeting with the PT and LM.

Semester 2

  • Participate in tutorials.
  • Collate materials as required for the Basic Skills module.
  • Complete one full competence as indicated within Common Awards module guides by mid-year submission deadline.
  • Participate in the mid-year practice meeting with the PT and LM no later then February half-term.
  • Write up notes from the mid-year practice meeting and ensure all participants sign these off.

Semester 3

  • Participate in tutorials
  • Collate materials as required for the Basic Skills module.
  • Submit the Basic Skills portfolio
  • Undertake the presentation for the integrative task
  • Submit the Ministerial Formation Submission

Further information on this final assessment can be found in Section 5.