School for Parish Development 2021
What is the Diocesan School for Parish Development?
The Diocesan School for Parish Development (SPD) is a Diocesan Program organised by the Department of Mission and Ministry Development which aims to give parishes educational resources so that they can grow their community in faith and their mission.
Registration is now open!
We are happy to announce that the registration for the Diocesan School for Parish Development is now open! If you wish to get registered, please click the button below to access the registration page:
An opportunity for both clergy and lay people to develop skills in congregation and organizational development.
The School equips people to
- Look at their current reality: Who are we? Where are we?
- Discern the future: What is God calling us to be in this time and place?
- Work on plans to get to the future: How do we get there?
Approach
Integrating personal faith and Anglican theological understanding, the School focuses on how individuals, groups, and whole organizations function. We draw on material from congregational and organization development. Both new and experienced leaders benefit from readings, discussions, case studies and other forms of learning and, following the School, apply their learning to parish projects.
The whole program is offered over two years; participants can begin in either Year A or Year B.
Expectations
Each day begins with Morning Prayer, followed by a combination of plenary sessions and small group work. A social hour precedes dinner. Most evenings include an after-dinner session, and the day ends with Evening Prayer. Because of the demanding pace, participants should not expect to complete other work such as sermon preparation.
Participants are expected to take responsibility their own learning. This includes completing assigned readings, participating fully in working sessions, attending daily worship and engaging and completing team projects. Late arrivals and early departures are discouraged.
Participants wishing to receive a certificate of completion must complete both sessions (Years A and B), submit two project write-ups, and complete the readings between sessions. They are also asked to sign a learning agreement at the beginning of their first session and pass the “models exam” sometime during their second session.