When Trauma Comes to Church: Webinar

Trauma is walking into all of our doors, but often is hard to see. It sits in the background of children, young people and adults, from all walks of life. Faith organisations should be welcoming and safe environments, but this is sadly not always the case.

How do we best support and create a safe space for those who have experienced trauma, helping them find community, and supporting their wellbeing?

Join us to learn the first steps to creating safe spaces during our church activities for those who have experienced trauma.

This introductory webinar will:

• raise awareness of individual signs of trauma responses
• discuss the importance of preventing traumatisation in the first place
• increase your understanding of the way trauma can affect experiences of the Christian faith & church events
• explore ways to be more accessible & welcoming to those who have experienced adversity
• resource the church community in knowing when& where to turn for more expert help

The training will be delivered by Ruth Stephens and Tracy Bennett.

Ruth Stephens is passionate about seeing churches become welcoming environments where those who have experienced adversity feel safe to connect to each other and to God. She holds an MSc in Attachment Psychology and is a qualified Occupational Therapist with many years experience working with children and young people who have experienced trauma. Alongside this she is a church leader and led children's ministries in her church for over many years.

Tracy Bennett is a qualified, Independent Social Worker, with 25 years’ experience of supporting children and families impacted by adversity and trauma. She is passionate about empowering children, individuals, and families to thrive. Over the last four years, Tracy has specialised in working with community organisations providing training in trauma informed practice and running empowerment courses and workshops for individuals and families aimed at breaking cycles of generational trauma and building individual and community resilience.

(Please note: this webinar is a repeat of the event with the same title on 11 June 19:30-21:00)