Wherever you live or worship there is always scope for developing retail chaplaincy as part of local ministry. You don’t have to be ordained to be a chaplain, but you do have to be prepared to commit to giving an hour or two a week over an extended period. The essence of chaplaincy is being a regular visitor who gets to know those who work in the local shops.

Being a retail chaplain is about putting faith into action – caring for those at work as they cope with the stresses and challenges of working in a very competitive and often highly pressured sector of the economy. It is a ministry of presence – and above all of listening. The agenda for conversations is always set by the person a chaplain meets.

Conversations can be brief, often snatched in the spaces between other tasks, in the staff canteen, or in the shop itself as opportunity allows. A chaplain always needs to be sensitive to the context in which they work and treat all conversations as confidential.

Those they meet talk to Chaplains about a great range of topics. Personal experiences such as bereavement, health, families and relationships, but also about work related issues including coping with stress at work, managing change, work-life balance, vocation and fulfilment, career development and redundancy.

Chaplains care for individuals but also for the company – how people work together and relate to each other. The chaplain’s role is sometimes to reflect with managers and others in a more structured way about concerns and issues that affect a company, branch or business.

The Retail Chaplains Network always encourages those interested in being chaplains to seek the support and accreditation of their own church or local Churches Together. In many places Industrial Mission (IM) teams offer specialised training, support and co-ordination for those involved with workplace visiting.

The Network keeps a database of chaplains and teams. For more information on chaplaincy in your area, or for links to your local town or city centre chaplaincy project or IM team contact us by clicking here.

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