Welcome to the CARIS Islington Website
Caris Islington is a registered charity which runs two projects in Islington:
Bereavement Counselling Service for children and adults
Cold weather night shelter for homeless people in Islington
CARIS Islington 2021 AGM
CARIS Islington 2021 AGM will be held on Zoom on Wednesday 15th December 2021. The Agenda, minutes and copy of report and accounts from last year will be distributed before the meeting.
BEREAVEMENT SERVICE - COVID & REFERRAL INFORMATION UPDATE
CARIS staff are all working remotely so counselling sessions are being done by phone or video. Phone calls to 020 7281 5200 are picked up by our administrator and voicemails are forwarded to her by email. If you would like to refer to our service please check the Bereavement Counselling page on this website. If you would like to contact us it is best to send an email or use the contact form on this website rather than phoning. If you want to speak to a specific person please send a text or email. For general information please fill out our contact form.
SENIOR COUNSELLOR/SUPERVISOR for CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE VACANCY
Hours: 8 hours to work with children & young people
Working days: Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday (negotiable but must include Wednesday)
Contract: Fixed term (renewable depending on funding)
Salary: £27,103 per annum (pro-rata)
We are looking for someone with the following:
BACP/UKCP/NCS accredited (or similar organisation) counsellor or psychotherapist
Undertaking training or a qualification in clinical supervision
The successful applicant will provide:
Clinical supervision to volunteer counsellors
Clinical assessment for children and young people who are residents of the London Borough of Islington
The candidate will develop and deliver training to volunteers as well as our recruitment training
To assist the Manager in the clinical management of the Bereavement Service
How to apply
Please email Liz: [email protected] for a job description and a criteria form.
You will then be asked to send a CV and personal statement and will be given instructions on how to apply.
We are checking applications as they come in so if you're interested in applying please send in your application as soon as you can.
Interviews
Interviews will be on Zoom with a panel of 3 or 4 of our team members.
You will deliver a short presentation and then be asked a series of questions so we can get to know you better. You will also have the opportunity to ask us questions.
Volunteers
If you are a counsellor or counsellor in training and would like to volunteer with us we offer training courses once a year. We have 2 services: adults and children & young people. Our next training course will be for children and young people in December 2021. If you would like to be added to our waiting list for any of the services please email [email protected] including which service you would like to work with.
VOLUNTEER BEREAVEMENT COUNSELLOR TRAINING
Thank you for all of you who have shown an interest in Children & Young People Training. We have had a really good response and have now closed all applications. We recruit nearly every year so don't think you have missed out. Please email Liz: [email protected] if you want to be added to our volunteer waiting list specifying if you want to work with adults or children & young people.
COLD WEATHER SHELTER UPDATE - NOVEMBER 2021
It is with great regret that CARIS Islington has come to the conclusion that we are unable to run the Cold Weather Shelter in our churches this winter. Other London boroughs have taken a similar decision, have moved to a single fixed location, or are looking to implement alternative arrangements. We know many of you will share the same disappointment we feel over this decision.
In previous years prior to the pandemic, seven churches supported by hundreds of volunteer workers participated in a rota offering guests accommodation overnight for one night each week. The Church space is often multi-use and used on other evenings of the week for church and community activities. Sadly, the challenges of maintaining safety requirements surrounding Covid to keep guests and volunteers safe goes against many of the strengths of our current Cold Weather Shelter model. Coupled with this, there are financial challenges for CARIS as there are for many organisations following the pandemic, which means we are unable to invest in infrastructure for the shelters to operate safely this year.
We are now consulting with other bodies to explore different ways we can support those who find themselves homeless in Islington. We will keep you informed of any possibilities. We very much hope that the suspension of the Cold Weather Shelter this year is a temporary necessity and that we can resume the Shelter programme in 2023.
Thank you all for your support of the Cold Weather Shelter scheme over the years. We very much hope we can work with you again in the near future.
If you are homeless and require support
In the first instance please contact Islington Council for advice and practical support. The council manages referrals to homeless shelters in Islington and will assess your requirements to build a solution that meets your needs.
Homeless Links
There are many services to help the homeless in Islington Islington Housing
Find out more Homeless in England
If you would like to volunteer for our cold weather shelter in the future please email the team on [email protected]
Our Vision
Caris Islington
"Our vision is of a community service open to all in Islington affected by bereavement or homelessness, offering counselling and cold weather shelters"
(From the Caris Islington Mission Statement)
We work with bereaved people and homeless in Islington, North London. For homeless people we provide a cold weather night shelter. For bereaved people we provide bereavement counselling for adults, children and young people.
You can find more information about our projects on this website. You can also go to our download section for our latest Annual Report and other information about CARIS Islington.
CARIS LATEST NEWSLETTER
To subscribe to our newsletter please contact us via our email contact form
Our Summer 2021 Newsletter was published at end of August which you can access here Summer Newsletter
Our Trustees
Would you like to become one of our Trustees?
Caris Islington is managed by a board of trustees who meet quarterly:
Nick Hopkins (Chair)
Jan Gale (Company Secretary)
Abigail Goldsbrough
Daniel Needleman
Judy Graham
Nehir Kirlar
If you would like to get in touch with our trustees please email [email protected] or complete our contact form.
Please see our Trustee Responsibilities for information about the role of CARIS Islington's trustees, its committees and policies.
Contact us if you would be interested in joining one of our committees or becoming a trustee.
Financial Information
Our Supporters
Although CARIS has its roots in local Christian churches, we cannot stress enough that our counselling is not faith based. People are welcome as clients, employees and volunteers from all backgrounds and all faiths or none. Part of our training has always been to ensure that people of faith set aside their beliefs during counselling sessions so that they can keep their attention on their clients with open hearts and minds. Click here for a PDF about Gift Aid and to download a gift aid form. Caris Islington and its projects rely entirely on donations.
To donate to us or for finance enquires please email [email protected]
Links
Some of the churches that have been involved with CARIS include:
St Mary's, Upper Street
St John's, Duncan Terrace
St Stephen's, Canonbury
St Mary Magdalene & St David
Christchurch
St Giles Mission
St Luke's Church
The Polish Church in Islington
St Andrew's, Whitehall Park
St Thomas', Finsbury Park
St Mary's Hornsey Rise
Supporting Documents
Caris Mission Statement
Trustee Responsibilities
Caris Committee Structure
Equal Oportunities Policy
Caris Confidentiality Policy
Caris History
Gift Aid
Caris Annual Report 2017/18
