Posted: 04/03/10
College welcomes its first chaplain
A new chaplain has been appointed to support students at West Nottinghamshire College who may want to explore more about theirs and others' faiths and beliefs.
Rob Hurd, who is based at Blidworth’s Sherwood Forest Community Church, also works for the YMCA in Mansfield and Nottingham supporting young people as a cultural and spiritual development worker.
He will initially work one day a week at the college assisting students’ faith and cultural needs. It is the first time the college has had its own chaplain.
Rob said: “I am looking forward to working with the college and meeting the students. The college seems a really friendly place. I’m available for all students who may have questions about faith or religion or even if they want to chat confidentially about dealing with a crisis such as a bereavement.
“I am hoping to explore setting up an inter-faith workshop and some students have already expressed an interest in establishing a Christian union.”
Rob will work at the college’s Derby Road and Chesterfield Road sites in Mansfield on alternate Tuesday afternoons and will offer flexible appointments for students who may wish to meet him.
The college’s health, safety and welfare team leader Jamie Wragg is delighted with Rob’s arrival. He said: “Our students are all entitled to their own beliefs and I feel that Rob's spiritual guidance at the college will broaden people’s awareness of their own and others’ faiths.
“This additional facility for students, together with our new multi-faith room at the Chesterfield Road campus, is certainly a positive step for the college.”
Rob has worked as a trained minister for five years after graduating from Mattersey Hall Theological College in Doncaster.
