Volunteering is more than just an act of service - it is a response to God's love for us, and a way to reflect that love through service to others. The Servant Heart Program (SHP) offers an opportunity for those who feel called to serve, to deepen their faith through greater understanding of a servant's heart. It also equips participants with essential knowledge and skills in areas such as Safeguarding, Wellbeing, Health and Safety.
Through service, we live out our faith and share the Good News in a practical, impactful way. Volunteering becomes a powerful witness of our beliefs in everyday life. The Servant Heart Program is open to Youth, Young Adults, and Adult Mentors who are eager to serve in various capacities - supporting events, programs, retreats, camps, and mission work within our Church community.
To register for the Servant Heart Program click the link below.
The program consists of four modules delivered online and a workshop day.
SH01 - Introduction to Volunteering
SH02 - Servant Heart
SH03 - Safeguarding (Level 1)
SH04 - Wellbeing, Health and Safety
SH05 - Servant Heart Workshop Day
Volunteering offers young people a meaningful way to live out their faith in everyday life. It provides an opportunity to bear witness to the Gospel through acts of service and love. Volunteering, as an act of love, also nurtures personal growth. It can build self-esteem, deepen knowledge and skills, foster community connection, and create space for individuals to discover and share their unique gifts and talents.
By offering a structured volunteer program that connects young people with opportunities across the Archdiocese, we empower them to live out their Catholic faith in service. This benefits not only the volunteers themselves but also the ministries, agencies, movements, and groups working to spread the Gospel and advance the mission of the Church.
The Servant Heart module is grounded in Scripture and Catholic teaching, guiding volunteers to understand the servant nature that Jesus embodied throughout His ministry. It offers insight into the origin and source of love, emphasising how Jesus exemplified a servant heart - putting the needs of others before His own and ultimately giving of Himself for the glory of God. This module also encourages volunteers to reflect on and explore their sacramental gifts (Charisms), which are given to individuals to help others encounter Christ, live as missionary disciples, and bring about transformation in society through the light of the Gospel.
The Safeguarding module in addition to the Servant Heart Workshop Day (Safeguarding Session) will qualify participants to register and complete the Safeguarding Level 1 induction training. This module introduces participants to the National Catholic Safeguarding Standards, Screening & Monitoring Policy, Safeguarding Policy, and Guidelines. It includes information on the types of abuse (Physical, Emotional, Sexual, Neglect and Online), the Code of Conduct, Reporting and Responding to Abuse and the importance of Prevention.
Duty of care is a duty to take reasonable care of a person. We all have a duty of care to not cause foreseeable harm to other people or property. The Wellbeing, Health and Safety module aims to support volunteers to understand this, to provide education on the essential topics that help them ensure their own safety, as well as that of the youth and young adults they are serving. The module aims to provide basic and essential information relating to manual handling, identifying and reporting hazards, incident reporting and relevant safe work policies, instructions, and procedures.
Servant Heart Workshop Days are held throughout the year, to gather those who have completed the online learning, review the content covered and put the knowledge they have learnt into practice. The workshop day is also an opportunity to discover individuals' charisms and connect them to places of service, to allow an opportunity to build connection between people wishing to volunteer and put their faith into action. The day provides a space for connection and fellowship and in turn supports building a healthy volunteer culture. The workshop will supplement the content covered in the online modules and involve focus sessions, building on a volunteer’s knowledge of the topics for Safeguarding, Wellbeing, Health and Safety, and a Servant Heart.
