Organisation and Structure

The Civil Service Christian Union (CSCU) consists of Christian Civil Servants who are scattered throughout the Civil Service in Northern Ireland, meeting in small groups to study the Bible, to pray together and to reach out to colleagues. Civil Servants who are not Christians are also very welcome to attend meetings. These groups are the heart of what we do, with minimal formal co-ordination by a Central Committee.

Each group tends to have its own characteristics - the day/times they meet (most are for half an hour, once per week) and their activities (inviting speakers, regular Bible study, prayer etc). However, the things that all groups have in common are:

1. They have a Representative Member (RM), who usually organises the meetings, and acts as the link with the Central Committee and with the wider CSCU. Often groups start out with only two or three members. To share the burden of organising meetings, some groups form a local committee to share out the work of arranging venues, setting up the programme, advertising it to colleagues, chairing meetings, circulating Ministry magazine, collecting subscriptions, etc.

2. The groups are inter-denominational and are led by those who are members of the CSCU and who have therefore committed themselves to the CSCU's evangelical statement of faith.

3. All civil servants are welcome to attend groups - temporary staff/Senior Civil Servants/support grades/retired civil servants, etc - and in fact staff from a wide variety of grades do attend. Where several Departments share a building, groups are also inter-Departmental.

4. They meet on a regular basis, mostly during the working day in a room in the building in which they work. The Civil Service Christian Union is entitled to the same facilities as any other organisation engaged in extra-official activities which are in the interests of staff relations, for example, meetings of societies or indoor sport or recreation. The use of official premises for such activities is subject to availability and to the approval of the Establishment/Personnel Officer.

The Central Committee is a small grouping of serving and retired Civil Servants who have been voted into the various Committee offices. The Committee meets together to:

1. pray for the work of the wider CSCU;
2. act as a co-ordinating body and resource, supporting Representative Members within the local groups, and representing the CSCU;
3. publish the magazine "Ministry" as a means of promoting communication and fellowship between CSCU members; and
4. organise events to encourage fellowship and sharing between groups, in particular an Annual General & Fellowship Meeting.

Hopefully the above information may encourage you to do one or more of the following:

1. start attending a local CSCU group;
2. take up membership of the Civil Service Christian Union;
3. start up a group in your own building if one doesn't already meet there. If you are interested in doing so, please contact the Civil Service Christian Union at the contact address shown below (mark correspondence PERSONAL):

   Ian Caughey
   Department for Social Development
   PTP Project Management Office
   6th Floor, Room 620
   Windsor House
   9-15 Bedford Street
   BELFAST
   BT2 7UE

   or e-mail rjcousins@tiscali.co.uk

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