Laura Cohen is a HR Adviser who is funded through People & Places to provide HR Parish Support. This HR support is designed to release people in our parishes who are involved in the administrative and legislative challenges that employing staff can bring, helping them to dedicate more time to missional activities in their community.
Laura commented, “We understand that it is difficult to keep up with legislative changes and the ever-increasing complexities that employing people can bring. It has been rewarding to work with parishes and help them with all sorts of queries, ranging from contracts of employment to implementing policies and procedures. Whatever the HR issue is, I’m here to help guide you through it.”
Her practical HR advice and guidance has included helping PCCs with recruitment, advertising for roles, providing applications forms, giving interview guidance, and finding suitable experts to sit on interview panels from within CofEB staff team.
More recently, Laura has been advising on questions related to implementing an employee wellbeing policy and delivering line management training, in direct response to parish requests for help in these areas.
During this line management training, the participants discussed related topics such as managing sickness, conducting annual appraisals, and managing personal versus work boundaries.
Additionally, Laura and Emma Sargeant, Growing Younger Adviser in the Mission Support team, have developed a helpful recruitment resource with links to appropriate guidance and recruitment forms. This accessible and interactive Recruitment Process flowchart shows best practice in recruitment, applicable policies and procedures, who to contact, and other useful information. This new resource is now being showcased at the Archdeaconry Explore Days on 23 September and 14 October 2023.
If you are finding HR challenging or simply have questions, then please contact our CofEB in-house expertise by speaking to Laura Cohen, HR Adviser, at: laurac@cofebirmingham.com.