Sample of All FAQs (Helpie FAQ)
Helpie FAQ
- can I gift aid my membership?
Yes, you can Gift Aid your membership, meaning CMF can claim up to 25% on top of what you give at no extra cost to you. Sign a Gift Aid declaration when you join, or sign this form.
- What training will I receive?
We are committed to training volunteers well for each role. This will include relevant face to face training and, in some occasions, relevant courses.
- Who would be my line manager?
Line managers are CMF staff or, if present in your area, a Regional Team leader. Each role is linked to a department and you will be welcome to join in on training as relevant. We look to link you with a local CMFer for support and input where needed.
- How long would I need to commit for?
This will depend on the role. Some roles are ad-hoc with no minimum time commitment. Others benefit from a longer period of commitment which we can discuss with you.
- Why are there so many volunteer roles in CMF?
CMF is a diverse organization with 4 main aims (discipleship, evangelism, mission and values). We don’t see these roles as unfilled positions but instead, unrealized opportunities. The harvest is ripe – and we are called to send workers into the harvest fields! The opportunities are huge, and we are praying that God would raise up his people in these different areas to see transformed lives and situations.
- Why should I get involved with CMF?
At CMF we believe that God has planned in advance good works for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). We also believe that God’s church is his body and that we all have different gifts to bring and that he is building his church! Our service is a response to God’s love for us. All of this means that we want to see CMF members grow in their faith as they serve God in the places they spend most of their time. So we are committed to equipping people to do roles well and to seeing them grow in faith as they fulfill their roles. We are also committed to seeing our vision fulfilled and working as equal partners towards that goal of seeing medics and nurses living and speaking for Jesus in every area of medicine and nursing.
- How do finances work?
We ask local medics and nurses to pray for you during your time with CMF. We also encourage them to give to CMF to specifically support you while you are with us. We write to them when you start and encourage you to keep people updated through at least termly newsletters. You can of course include friends/relatives on your email list!
The local financial support covers conference and training fees and travel expenses.
As an ASW you can claim expenses on the following:
- Travel to/from the CMF office
- Travel to/from a conference that you have agreed with your line manager in advance.
- Lunch – up to £5 per day on the days you are in the CMF office or on a team day
- Conference fees – for conferences/training days that have been agreed in your year-plan.
- External courses – for those taking this route we can pay up to £500 to an external training partner towards your training fees. Please ask the organisation to address fees up to this figure to CMF and we can do this directly via bank transfer rather than paying you.
- Which conferences will I attend?
Attendance as part of the team at the National Conference and the Student conference is mandatory. We will also encourage you to attend a Saline and a Confident Christianity day course. There will be numerous opportunities to attend other conferences by prior agreement with your line manager, time permitting.
- What happens on away days?
Typically, we have had one per term. We have done an overnight residential at L’Abri community in Hampshire, StrengthsFinder training, Christian Heritage Tours and more. People have found these days to be real highlights of the year and give more time to digest and discuss the things we are learning.
- When does training happen?
If you would like to join Deep:ER Fellowship sessions and you are close to London, every other week please aim to come into the office on a Wednesday. As per the timetable, we will run these 20 times in a year.
9am-1pm
- Staff prayers 9.15-9.45am
- Student team meeting/prayer 10-10.30am
- Teaching session 10.30-12noon
- Mentor meeting/office work 12-1pm
- Every month 1-2pm Theology Forum
(those not able to attend in person should try to Skype in from 10am-12noon)
Those not in the office will have to seek other opportunities to lead Bible studies/prayer meetings.
1-5pm
You might then use the afternoon for your project or other work.
- How will I spend my time?
The role is flexible and you will need to plan your time in tandem with your line manager at the beginning of the year. This will include factoring in any relevant team days and conferences. The key is that ASWs support the work of student ministry among medics or nurses, contributing to the work of the Student and Nursing departments.
- In terms of study with external organisations, what sort of opportunities are on offer?
The Deep:ER brochure lists some organisations we have linked with. We don’t have a ‘formal’ relationship with them but they are aware that we want to encourage medics to consider doing something else alongside your ASW year and we would especially recommend these options. We can offer up to £500 a year towards fees etc. It will depend on what you want to do – one ASW completed their local Gospel Partnership course 1 day a week for example.
- Who would be my line manager?
Line managers are CMF staff or, if present in your area, a Regional Team leader. We look to link you with a local CMFer for support and input where needed.
- Can I do a Fellowship option as per the Deep:ER Fellowship?
Yes. We feel it would be helpful to have an area of interest and involvement. Please see the Deep:ER Fellowship brochure to see the Fellowship options and we can discuss an area that you would like to get involved in. For example, you might be able to write/blog on advocacy issues, or be involved in developing evangelism resources or podcasts – all of which could predominantly be done from home.
- What if I can only give a year?
Ideally a minimum commitment is 2 years. This role is highly relational and you might find that a year isn’t long enough to establish these relationships. However if you do only have a year we can discuss possibilities.
- Where can I be an ASW?
The ASW roles are ideally performed in or near the place you live/work. It is a ‘drop a day’ option where you might work 3-4 days a week and give a day for CMF ministry where you are. This might include running local events, mentoring local student leaders, joining some of the Deep:ER training programme and much more.
- Sometimes we are asked to provide information or advice that we cannot help with, as we are not legally in a position to do so. This includes:
- Providing the names or contact details of a Christian doctor, nurse, midwife, psychiatrist or counselling services etc.
- Connecting you with a doctor to help with a medical negligence claim.
- Providing medical advice: we cannot give personal medical advice or prescriptions as we are not a healthcare provider.
- Helping people get a job in the NHS, a place in a UK medical or nursing school, or a clinical attachment at an NHS hospital in the UK.
- Do you produce resources in languages other than English?
Many of our CMF files are available in Russian and Chinese, and some of our books and other resources are also available in other languages. For more information, contact us on communications@cmf.org.uk.
- I am looking for a specific CMF resource but cannot find it on this site.
If it is content from before 2018, it may be on our archive site at [URL to be created]. Alternatively, contact communications@cmf.org.uk and we will see if we can find it for you.
- Can I have permission to use excerpts from CMF articles, books, blogs, etc.
While all CMF content is copyrighted, we are always happy to consider requests to share our content on other sites and publications, with appropriate credits. To ask for permission and to find out more, please contact communications@cmf.org.uk.
- Can I use the CMF logo for my local/student/workplace CMF group publicity or social media?
Contact communications@cmf.org.uk to discuss this.
- Can you help me with research (eg for a PhD, etc.) that I am undertaking?
This will depend on the nature of the request – please contact us on communications@cmf.org.uk and we can discuss whether we are able to assist.
- Can CMF link to my online article/ blog / website?
We only link to external sites that are either directly related to our own content or who are partner agencies with whom we work closely. We do not link to external sites that come from organisations or individuals not known to us.
- Can I get a quote/interview from someone at CMF about a news story on which I am reporting or writing?
Contact us at communications@cmf.org.uk or ring our media consultant, Alistair Thompson, on 07970 162 225 or see our Press and Media Enquiries page.
- Can I have a CMF speaker at a meeting/church service/conference?
Contact communications@cmf.org.uk to see if we can help.
- Can you tell me what events you are running in my area?
Check out the CMF Events page on this website or email events@cmf.org.uk for more information.
- Is there a student/local/workplace CMF group in my area?
Check our Local Groups page on this website. If you cannot find anything near you, email memberadmin@cmf.org.uk and we will see if there is anything going on near you that is not yet online.
- Can you put me in touch with another member(s)?
We cannot legally share members’ details, even with other members, without their explicit permission. If you are happy to share your details with us, we will gladly pass it on to the member in question, but it will be up to them to respond. Email memberadmin@cmf.org.uk.
- Can you take payments for membership/events/books in other currencies?
We can currently only take payment in sterling (pounds) or euros. If this will present a problem, contact us on admin@cmf.org.uk.
- Can I pay my membership using CAF or Stewardship?
As a general rule, you can, although we cannot take payments for conferences or books this way. Contact us to discuss this further: memberadmin@cmf.org.uk.
- How can I give to the work of CMF?
You can give one off donations via our Donate button, or set up a regular gift using the same page. You can also specify which area of ministry you want to give to. If you have any questions, contact us at memberadmin@cmf.org.uk.
- I am not a medic, but I am interested in the work of CMF. Can I join?
Yes! You are very welcome to join CMF as an Associate Member. Go to our Join CMF section of the website and select ‘Associate Member’ for more details.
- I am a Christian doctor/nurse/midwife from outside the UK and Ireland – can I join?
While you are very welcome to join, we would strongly encourage you to join your own national fellowship first. If you are uncertain whether there is a national doctors’ or nurses’ fellowship in your country, please check out the ICMDA website for medical and dental groups – https://icmda.net/regions/ and the NCFI website for nursing and midwifery groups – https://ncfi.org/regions/.
- I am a Christian doctor/nurse/midwife in the Republic of Ireland – can I join CMF?
Yes, you can. All types of membership are open to those in the Republic, and we have a number of student groups around the country – details are on our Local Groups page on this website.
- I am a Christian dentist/dental student in the UK – can I join CMF?
You can, but we would recommend that you join the Christian Dental Fellowship instead – https://www.cdf-uk.org/.
- I cannot get into my CMF account – can you help me?
Yes. Please email memberadmin@cmf.org.uk and we will get you set up.
- I need to update my membership details – how do I do this?
You can do this by logging into your account and updating your membership details on the welcome page. You can do this by logging into your account and updating your membership details on the welcome page. If you have difficulties with this, you can send us your new details using this form by clicking here.
- My circumstances have changed, and I would like to change my membership type.
Please complete the Change of Membership Type form here and we can sort this out for you.