Research published today, by Naomi Thompson and Lucie Shuker, illuminates the place of religion, faith and spirituality in JNC-recognised youth work training courses in England.
The research concludes that: equipping youth workers to work with diverse religious communities should not be left to chance. If issues of religion, faith and spirituality are not more explicitly covered in teaching on JNC-recognised programmes, youth workers may not develop the religious literacy they need to engage with the issues outlined here. There is also a danger of youth workers reinforcing problematic assumptions, either informed by their religious beliefs or about others with religious beliefs, if there is not sufficient space to engage explicitly with religion, faith and spirituality as part of their training. Arguably, optional modules and ad hoc lectures are not sufficient to ensure all youth workers, regardless of their personal faith position are equipped to understand and work with young people and professionals from diverse backgrounds. A dominantly secular culture is likely to inhibit reflection on secularity as a subjective worldview in itself and make it more likely that religion is approached narrowly where it does emerge.
Overall, this research raises questions about how youth workers with JNC-recognised qualifications might be better equipped by their university training programmes to work with diverse religious communities and with the faith-based sector. Youth workers need to develop a religious literacy (Dinham, 2018) to work with the largest sector of their field and with the diverse religious young people who they will engage in their practice. A broader and more explicit recognition of religion, faith and spirituality, as well of other specific social justice issues and how these intersect, in the youth work NOS would support this.