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Policies on this page include:

  • Safeguarding Statement for Vulnerable Adults

  • Bursaries Policy

  • Funding CLW Attendance Policy

  • Pilgrim Weekend Fees Policy

  • Weekends Refund Policy

  • Financial Reserves Policy

  • Data Protection Policy (you can also download our Data Protection Guidance)

  • Health and Safety Policy

Policies

Safeguarding Statement for Vulnerable Adults

Our Safeguarding Officer is Revd Olivia Coles. Olivia can be contacted by email on revoliviacoles AT gmail DOT com or by phone on 01223 833128.

 

ELY CURSILLO in the Diocese of Ely is committed to safeguarding all those who attend an Ely Cursillo Weekend and other activities within the Movement. We have adopted The Church of England Promoting a Safer Church Safeguarding Policy Statement for Children, Young People and Adults. We seek to create a culture where everyone is included, respected, listened to, and taken seriously.

 

We have adopted the following training requirements for members of the secretariat and weekend staff.

 

  • Lay Director: Basic Awareness, Foundation, Raising Awareness of Domestic Abuse, Leadership

  • Safeguarding Officer: Basic Awareness, Foundation and Leadership

  • Other members of the Secretariat: Basic Awareness

  • Safeguarding Administrator: Basic Awareness

  • Weekend Staff: Basic Awareness

 

It is suggested that weekend staff also complete the Foundation level but this is not compulsory.

 

This broadly reflects the training requirements set out for a PCC on the Parish dashboard system adopted by Ely Cursillo.

 

The Lay Director will also undergo a DBS check. If this has not already happened through any other roles they may hold, this will be organised by arrangement with the Diocese of Ely.

 

We follow recommended safeguarding practice training for our Cursillistas on staff team for supporting our Cursillistas/Pilgrims on a Cursillo Weekend. There are always two members of clergy on a Weekend who have been DBS checked.

 

We will respond without delay to any complaint that a vulnerable adult in our care may have about the behaviour of a volunteer team member serving on behalf of Ely Cursillo. We will seek advice on such matters from the Diocesan Safeguarding Officer, and we will co-operate with statutory agencies during any enquiries they need to make into allegations against a member of Ely Cursillo. During those enquiries we will do our best to ensure that those making an allegation, and those against whom an allegation is made, are supported appropriately.

 

We seek to offer informed pastoral care and support to any adult whose life has been affected by abuse, whether the abuse was recent or long ago. Where there is a current risk to vulnerable people that has not yet been brought to light, we will support the person who has suffered abuse in taking information to the appropriate agencies.

 

This policy has been developed in association with the Diocese of Ely Safeguarding team.

 

This policy is reviewed every 3 years, or before the 3 years is completed if there are changes to safeguarding practice or policy in the Diocese of Ely, following legislation changes to bring the policy in line with such changes, or as a result of an unanticipated scenario.

Bursaries Policy

This policy applies to both Pilgrims1 and Cursillistas attending a residential weekend event organised by Ely Cursillo.

 

Attendees may apply to Ely Cursillo for financial assistance in the form of a bursary towards the attendance fee, for any value up to and including the full attendance fee, where affordability is an issue for the attendee. Such applications are made via the Booking Secretary for the event at the time of booking onto the event, or directly to the Directors of Ely Cursillo. Applications are considered on an individual basis by the Directors (only) of Ely Cursillo taking into account the personal circumstances of the attendee, including making necessary enquiries to understand better their circumstances, and the financial health of Ely Cursillo at the time of the application. Bursaries are discretionary and the Directors’ decision is final. Any additional personal information gathered2 will be kept confidential and between the Directors only.

 

The annual payment of £150 made by Ely Diocese paid to Ely Cursillo is ring-fenced to enable the attendance at a Cursillo weekend of an ordinand or clergy person. In addition to this, for each Cursillo weekend Ely Cursillo may choose to fund up to two further places to be offered to: ordinands, ordained or licensed lay ministers, or licensed lay ministers in training. These places will be granted on a first come, first served, basis.

 

No other financial support will be offered by Ely Cursillo. The Directors of Ely Cursillo reserve the right to refuse a bursary request.

 

This policy is under the control of the Secretariat. Changes are immediate but subject to ratification by the AGM at the next AGM following the changes, or at the AGM the year after this if the changes came into effect within one month of the next AGM following the changes.

 

This policy is reviewed every 3 years, or before the 3 years are completed if the Secretariat feels that a policy change is needed due to the financial circumstances of the organisation or as a result of an unanticipated scenario.

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1 Individuals who are not members of a diocesan Cursillo attending a Pilgrim Weekend event.

 

2 Over and above the booking information.

Funding CLW Attendance Policy

This policy applies to Cursillistas attached to Ely Cursillo1 who wish to attend a Cursillo Leaders’Workshop (“CLW”) event organised/sponsored by the British Anglican Cursillo Council (“BACC”).

 

In keeping with BACC’s recommendation that those who have any sort of leadership role in Cursillo attend a CLW weekend before taking up their role, Ely Cursillo encourages its Cursillistas entering the following roles to go on a CLW:

 

  • all members of Secretariat

  • Lay Rectors and Observing Lay Rectors of Pilgrim Weekends

  • Spiritual Directors of Pilgrim Weekends

 

In recognition of the importance of these roles and the people who undertake them, Ely Cursillo will cover the attendance fee (only) of CLW for everyone who takes up any of the above listed roles. Other Cursillistas are welcome to attend a CLW but are expected to fund their own places.

 

The Secretariat reserves the right to refuse funding an attendee’s place on a CLW.

 

In connection with the above, it is also BACC’s recommendation that attendees of a CLW take out appropriate travel insurance to cover them for any financial loss due to not attending the CLW. Ely Cursillo endorses this approach. Where Ely Cursillo is covering the attendance fee, the following conditions apply:

 

  1. If the attendee cancels their place at least one month in advance of their CLW start date, Ely Cursillo will cover any financial losses incurred on the attendance fee and will not hold such losses “on account”. Notification must be in writing and given to the Secretariat.

 

  1. If the attendee cancels their place less than one month in advance of their CLW start date, Ely Cursillo will cover any financial losses incurred on the attendance fee but expect the attendee to provide the equivalent value contribution to, or the full deposit for, whichever is greater, their place when they next attend a CLW – hold the losses “on account”.

 

Should the attendee be unable to make the contribution described in condition 2, then they may apply to the Secretariat for a bursary, in which case the Bursaries Policy of Ely Cursillo will apply to this application.

 

This policy is under the control of the Secretariat. Changes are immediate but subject to ratification by the AGM at the next AGM following the changes, or at the AGM the year after this if the changes came into effect within one month of the next AGM following the changes.

 

This policy is reviewed every 3 years, or before the 3 years arecompleted if the Secretariat feels that a policy change is needed due to the financial circumstances of the organisation or as a result of an unanticipated scenario

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1 ‘Attached’ means registered on the Ely Cursillo database and attending a CLW as an Ely Cursillista.

Pilgrim Weekend Fees Policy

This policy governs the fee that Ely Cursillo will charge for attendance at Pilgrim Weekends organised by Ely Cursillo.

 

In connection with, and with reference to, the Financial Reserves Policy of Ely Cursillo, Ely Cursillo sets out to part fund places on Pilgrim Weekends, reducing the contribution paid by both Pilgrims and staff equally, as an appropriate use of the extra funds available over and above our Reserves level. When setting the funding level, in terms of the contribution paid by attendees, the Secretariat balances and takes into account the following:

 

  • The funds Ely Cursillo has over and above the Reserves level at the time of policy review.

  • The anticipated regular giving and donations for the coming 12 months.

  • The anticipated cost of running a weekend and changes of tariff for our host venue – as detailed in the calculations of the Financial Reserves Policy.

  • The broader financial landscape.

 

In this funding calculation, an anticipated bursary is also included, covering a pilgrim and a member of staff for the full attendance fee. This bursary level is based on experience from past weekends.

 

The attendance fee for Pilgrim Weekends is reviewed and set by Secretariat at the start of each financial year to take effect for the next weekend, provided this is no sooner than four calendar months away. Should there already be pilgrims booked on the next weekend and the attendance fee increases, the fee they paid at time of booking will be honoured. Should there already be pilgrims booked on the next weekend and the attendance fee decreases, they will be offered a partial refund equivalent to the reduction in the fee. The fee is announced at AGM via the Annual Report. This policy is under the control of the Secretariat. Changes are immediate but subject to ratification by the AGM at the next AGM following the changes, or at the AGM the year after this if the changes came into effect within one month of the next AGM following the changes. This policy is reviewed by the Secretariat annually or if/when our host venue changes and/or there is a change to the Financial Reserves Policy, whichever is the sooner.

Weekends Refund Policy

This policy applies to both Pilgrims1 and Cursillistas attending a residential weekend event organised by Ely Cursillo.

 

An attendee’s contribution to the cost of their place on a residential weekend event will be refunded in full provided the attendee gives Ely Cursillo, via the Booking Secretary for the event, written notice at least one month in advance of the event’s start date, subject to the event venue’s cancellation/refund policy.

 

For cancellations submitted closer to the event’s start date, refunds will be at the discretion of Ely Cursillo. Such requests for refund will be considered by the Secretariat on an individual basis, taking into account when the cancellation request was submitted, the reason for not attending and the event venue’s cancellation/refund policy. The expectation is that Ely Cursillo will not be out of pocket, but the Secretariat has the authority to make such decisions in exceptional circumstances. Attendees are recommended to acquire their own travel insurance to cover their potential losses.

 

The Secretariat reserves the right to refuse a refund request.

 

This policy is under the control of the Secretariat. Changes are immediate but subject to ratification by the AGM at the next AGM following the changes, or at the AGM the year after this if the changes came into effect within one month of the next AGM following the changes.

 

This policy is reviewed every 3 years, or before the 3 years is completed if the Secretariat feels that a policy change is needed due to the financial circumstances of the organisation or as a result of an unanticipated refund scenario.

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1 Individuals who are not members of a diocesan Cursillo attending a Pilgrim Weekend event.

Financial Reserves Policy

This policy governs the level of the financial reserves that Ely Cursillo maintains over each 12 month period of operation.

 

Ely Cursillo sets out the financial objective of always having sufficient funds to cover the full costs of the next weekend event. This value is set by Secretariat based on a modelled cost of a weekend using the current tariff of our host venue and the following assumptions/allowances to provide a realistic but maximal cost figure:

 

  • Full occupancy of the host venue.

  • Additional costs from the venue for things like extra food/drinks provision.

  • Additional expenses incurred for the weekend, such as flowers, banquet decorations and such like.

  • Cost of venue hire for the two training days associated with a Pilgrim Weekend.

 

The Reserve value is reviewed and set by Secretariat at the end of the previous financial year for the following financial year and announced at the following AGM via the Annual Report.

 

This policy is under the control of the Secretariat.

 

This policy is reviewed by the Secretariat annually or if/when our host venue changes, whichever is the sooner.

Data Protection Policy

Our Data Protection contact is: Kathleen Jowitt

 

Kathleen can be contacted on: kafjowitt AT gmail DOT com

 

Information Commissioner’s Office

 

0303 123 1113

 

https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/email/

 

Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.

 

 

Ely Cursillo is the data controller for data held on Pilgrims1 and Cursillistas.

 

Cursillo is made up of a number of different organisations and office-holders who work together to deliver our mission. Ely Cursillo works together with:

 

  • The Bishops of the Diocese of Ely; and

 

  • The British Anglican Cursillo Council, which is responsible for the financial and administrative arrangements for Cursillo nationally.

 

As Cursillo is made up of all of these persons and organisations working together, Ely Cursillo may need to share personal data it holds with them so that they can carry out their responsibilities to the Church and our community. The organisations referred to above are joint data controllers.

 

Each of the data controllers has their own tasks within Cursillo and a description of what data is processed and for what purpose is set out in this Policy.

 

“Personal data” is any information about a living individual which allows them to be identified from that data (for example a name, photograph, video, email address or address). Identification can be by the information alone or in conjunction with any other information. The processing of personal data is governed by the Data Protection Bill/Act 2017, the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (the “GDPR”) and other legislation relating to personal data and rights such as the Human Rights Act 1998.

 

The data controllers listed above will process some or all of the following where necessary to perform their tasks:

  • Names, titles, photographs;

 

  • Contact details such as telephone numbers, addresses and email addresses;

 

  • Where they are relevant to their mission, they may process names, titles, photographs, telephone numbers, addresses and email addresses;

 

  • Where donations are made, financial identifiers such as bank account numbers.

 

The data that Ely Cursillo processes is likely to constitute sensitive personal data because, as a religious organisation, the fact that it processes an individual’s data at all may be suggestive of their religious beliefs.

 

Ely Cursillo will comply with its legal obligations to keep personal data up to date; to store and destroy it securely; to refrain from collecting or retaining excessive amounts of data; to keep personal data secure, and to protect personal data from loss, misuse, unauthorised access and disclosure and to ensure that appropriate technical measures are in place to protect personal data.

 

Ely Cursillo uses personal data for some or all of the following purposes:

 

  • To enable it to meet all legal and statutory obligations;

 

  • To administer membership records;

 

  • To maintain its own accounts and records;

 

  • To process donations (including Gift Aid information);

 

  • To seek Cursillistas’ views or comments;

 

  • To notify Cursillistas of changes to our services, events and role holders;

 

  • To send Cursillistas communications which they have opted into receiving and that may be of interest to them.

 

Most of Ely Cursillo’s data is processed because it is necessary for its legitimate interests or the legitimate interests of a third party (such as another organisation in the Church of England).

 

Some of Ely Cursillo’s processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation. For example, the Annual General Meeting.

 

Religious organisations are also permitted to process information about an individual’s religious beliefs to administer membership or contact details. Where an individual’s information is used other than in accordance with one of these legal bases, Ely Cursillo will first obtain their consent to that use.

 

Personal data will be treated as strictly confidential. It will only be shared with third parties where it is necessary for the performance of Ely Cursillo tasks or where the individual first gives their prior consent. Ely Cursillo may need to share data with some or all of the following (but only where necessary):

 

  • The appropriate bodies of the Church of England including the other data controllers;

 

  • The British Anglican Cursillo Council;

 

  • Other persons or organisations operating within the Diocese of Ely.

 

Ely Cursillo will keep some records permanently if it is legally required to do so. It may keep some other records for an extended period of time. For example, it is current best practice to keep financial records for a minimum period of 7 years to support HMRC audits. In general, Ely Cursillo will endeavour to keep data only for as long as needed. This means that it may delete it when it is no longer needed.

 

Electronic personal data transferred to countries or territories outside the United Kingdom will only be placed on systems complying with measures giving equivalent protection of personal rights either through international agreements or contracts approved by the Information Commissioner’s Office.

 

If Ely Cursillo wishes to use personal data for a new purpose, not covered by this Policy, then it will provide a new notice explaining this new use prior to commencing the processing and setting out the relevant purposes and processing conditions. Where and whenever necessary, it will seek individuals’ prior consent to the new processing.

 

This Policy is reviewed every 3 years or before the 3 years is completed if there are changes to Data Protection Policy in the Diocese of Ely, following legislation changes to bring the Policy in line with such changes or as a result of an unanticipated scenario.

1Individuals who are not members of a diocesan Cursillo attending a Pilgrim Weekend event.

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1 Individuals who are not members of a diocesan Cursillo attending a Pilgrim Weekend event.

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NB: you can also download our Data Protection Guidance document

Health and Safety Policy

This document has been prepared in accordance with the provisions of theHealth and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and the regulations made under it. It should be read in conjunction with the Safeguarding policy.

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General Statement of Policy:

Our policy, so far as is reasonably practicable, is to provide and maintain safe and healthy conditions for all our volunteers, visitors and others who may take part in a Cursillo Weekend, one-day events and other group gatherings around the Diocese of Ely.

 

The policy will be kept up-to-date by reviewing 3-yearly, particularly in the light of any changes to our activities.

 

Ely Cursillo does not have premises or a building but uses the Chelmsford Diocesan Retreat House (Pleshey) for its weekends and various churches and church/village halls for other events. Therefore, the policies of the premises used will be adhered to while in occupation.

 

Organisation and Responsibilities:

Overall responsibility for health and safety is that of the Lay Director, currently Kathleen Jowitt, who will ensure that arrangements are in place to satisfy health and safety regulations and appropriate Codes of Practice, including a Risk Assessment. The Secretariat, whose members are also the Trustees, has general responsibility to ensure that the health and safety policy is implemented. With regard to a Cursillo Weekend, the Lay Rector will assume overall responsibility for health and safety.

 

All volunteers have a responsibility to cooperate in the implementation of this health and safety policy and to take reasonable care of themselves while helping at a Cursillo event.

 

Safeguarding:

Ely Cursillo has guidance in place so that ‘vulnerable adults’ are not encouraged to come on a Cursillo Weekend, e.g. someone who is recently bereaved or going through a personal crisis. However, there are always members of the clergy on Cursillo Weekends and at all other events, who have been DBS checked as part of the diocesan role, should someone become vulnerable. Our current Safeguarding Co-ordinator is the Revd Olivia Coles, Spiritual Director for Ely Cursillo.

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