Our Ethos and Values

The Meeting Place is not merely a building but also a community of people. Our ethos is our motivation for all our work – it is the reason why we do what we do. It is to work together to extend Jesus' model of the Kingdom of God on earth by living out a lifestyle of love, truth, justice, mercy and forgiveness, according to his teaching. We are inspired by his message, life and example through which God’s unconditional love for all people is expressed.

While this ethos is given life through our relationships, our relationships – the way we work together and behave with one another – are a demonstration and authentication of our ethos. It is through these relationships, with each other and those whom we seek to serve, that we practise our ethos.

Our ethos or motivation, and therefore our relationships, are rooted in our faith in Jesus Christ and in his love, which compels us to serve others, putting their needs first. When we work together it is this faith which directs and influences both our internal relationships as well as our work with those whom The Meeting Place is seeking to serve.

In this way The Meeting Place operates on the understanding that our activities are simply an outworking of our faith; that our ‘doing’ derives directly from our ‘being’. There is an essential and indissoluble link between the inner and the outer, the private life and the public face of The Meeting Place. The link between who we are and what we do cannot be broken.

We are proud members of the UK's national union of Baptist churches and para-church organisations, Baptists Together and its regional arm SCBA. Both these organisations provide us with a great deal of support, without which we would simply not be able to function effectively.  Our building is held in trust by the BUC and they are the final arbiters of what takes place here from day to day.  The building remains a consecrated place of (exclusively) Christian worship under the founding covenant so regrettably from time to time this prevents us from accepting requests for use from certain external groups.

Foundation Stone

Values about the way we work

  • Integrity
    We believe that our mission and purpose – to extend Jesus’ model of the Kingdom of God on earth – is indissolubly linked with how we operate internally. The values, which we promote as a church/project, should be matched by those which we practice in what we do for others and ourselves. The link between who we are and what we do cannot be broken.

  • Authenticity
    We believe that our purpose – to extend Jesus’ model of the Kingdom of God on earth through our activities – flows out of our desire to work towards the same for itself as a church/project. The love and care with which we serve others should be authenticated by the same love and care which we have for each other.

  • Transparency
    We believe that we should be open and transparent about our beliefs and the link between our beliefs and our mission in matters of publicity, fundraising, employment etc.

  • Accountability
    We believe that all we have comes from God and that we should exercise wisdom, integrity and responsibility in using the resources entrusted to us.

  • United effort by Christians
    We are committed to maintaining our distinctively Christian ethos by ensuring that Christians, as volunteers and staff are appointed to those positions which we have agreed, require Christians to fill them.

  • Diversity
    We believe that we have a duty to maintain our Christian distinctiveness by recruiting those who are committed to Christ’s teaching about the Kingdom of God. However, at the same time we want to embrace the values of inclusivity and diversity by welcoming and involving, where appropriate, those of other faiths and those of none.

  • Servant leadership
    We believe in working for the common good, where appropriate, through partnership with other churches, other Christian organisations and other voluntary and statutory agencies.

  • Equality
    We affirm the God-given value of each person and believe in the equal value of all. We stand for respect and freedom for everyone and tolerance and understanding between people of different opinions.

  • Discipleship
    We believe that as we serve others we learn as much about ourselves and our relationship with God as we do about the work.

  • Well-being
    We believe that God created people in His image, to be whole human beings and to flourish. We believe that well-being should characterise our lives as volunteers and staff and wherever else we belong and participate.

  • Transformation
    We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to develop and change, realising their potential and thus make a full contribution to the community and to society in general. We believe that as we grow and change, not only are we transformed but also the world around us. We believe that everyone is a learner and should be encouraged, supported and challenged to become who he or she can be. Learning who we are in God is as important as learning how to do the job.

  • Commitment to each other
    We believe that a tolerant society is one in which people of different opinions can live together in peace. In working together to deliver the work of the church/project we want to endeavour at all times to trust one another, being patient and forbearing. We should work at paying attention to the way we speak to one another, attempting to listen well and, even when it is uncomfortable to do so, being able to confront difficulties carefully and with compassion.

  • Interdependence
    We believe that each person has his or her own part to play and contribution to make to the whole. It believes that every opportunity should be taken to exchange views so that we can improve our understanding of ourselves and of one another and of the work we do.

  • Community
    We believe that a healthy community is one to which people feel that they belong. Within this community/place we are committed to the same way of life where volunteers and staff experience a sense of belonging to and identity with the church/project. We believe that successful delivery of our mission happens when people feel they belong and have a role, where inclusive community and a family atmosphere are fostered.