Chaplaincy | Student Christian Movement

Chaplaincy as Presence

21 May 2019

‘I’m still discovering right up to this moment, that it is only by living completely in this world that one learns to have faith… That is what I call this-worldliness: living unreservedly in life’s duties, problems, successes, and failures, experiences and perplexities. In so doing,...

In 2012, after years of working hard to get the grades I needed to get a place at university and move away from my hometown, I found myself as an undergrad at Newcastle University - the furthest away I could get whilst still being in England.

I had been working shifts while retaking A-...

Finding Faith through Chaplaincy

20 May 2019

I became a Christian in my penultimate term of university. It was the end of a period in which God was leading me to Him.

I had seen Christianity as a moral way to live, but didn’t believe in Jesus. This gradually changed at university. I met people who were open about their faith and who...

The Hospitality of Chaplaincy

15 May 2019

One of the first things I noticed about university chaplaincy at the beginning of my first year was that the Sunday morning services started half an hour later than the Sunday morning services at my hometown church. This realisation amused me: that the chaplaincy took the stereotypical laziness...

The Breathing Sacrament of Chaplaincy

3 May 2019

CN: references psychosis, suicide/suicide attempt, trauma.

University chaplains champion faith presence and practices on campus. What is sometimes less obvious is that they are part of university wellbeing teams: there for anyone of any faith, denomination or none, for...

Rach's Reflection: Championing Chaplaincy

3 May 2019

One of the many joys in my job as the Regional Development Worker for the North West is the time I spend with chaplains. Whether it’s a Facebook chat planning preaching appointments, a 1-2-1 over a cuppa, or a phone call to check that they're okay and talk about how I can support them and their...

The SCM Awards 2017 – Winners

12 Jun 2017

This past year, students, chaplains and churches have been working tirelessly to welcome new members, demonstrate God’s love to people in powerful ways, and shine a light in the darkest places. As we look ahead to fresher’s week this autumn, we’re inspired by them to do even more to support...

Some things never change…?

16 May 2016

This October it will have been twenty years since I began my own Undergraduate career, at the University of Birmingham. Twenty years since my Dad left me in my study bedroom, with two large suitcases and a box of crockery, in a flat with a bunch of strangers. It turns out I was twenty four hours...

Reaching out to Students: An Interview with Sally Hitchiner

8 Oct 2015

As Coordinating Chaplain at Brunel, what do you love most about your job?

It has to be the students. Being an undergraduate is such a formative time. It’s when people work out what values and influences they want to have an impact on the rest of their lives. Leaving home...

Chaplaincy and Student Work - Spot the Difference!

22 Jan 2015

I often find myself having circular conversations with church leaders about the differences between chaplaincy and student work.

Sometimes it is hard to spot the difference, but when the student work doesn’t happen it is all too obvious.

We once phoned a chaplain to ask them to...