time for you

'time for you' is an innovative small Christian charity that makes use of rooms on the ground floor of St Margaret's on Tuesdays and Thursdays. 

'time for you' consists of a team of both Scotswood people and others from a little further afield, mostly Christians, who are all committed to our main aim.

This main aim is to bring Christ's health, healing and wholeness (in their broadest senses) to our corner of Newcastle.

So how do we go about this major task?

Alongside running the 'timeout cafe' (see our separate web page on this), we also offer......

COMPLEMENTARY CARE IN THE NAME OF CHRIST    

One of the ways in which 'time for you' seeks to fulfil its main aim is by bringing those complementary therapies that we have examined carefully and prayerfully and have accepted as valid, firmly into the fold of the Church.  This is a responsibility that the 'time for you' trustees, manager and therapists take very seriously.  As it happens, almost all of our therapists are committed Christians, although this is not by policy.  Those therapists who are not Christians have to promise a sympathy for the Christian ethos of our ministry - a clear sympathy and acknowledgement of the fact that we exist to serve Christ and that, through their working with us, so do they.

OUR THERAPIES  Right now, the therapies that we offer are Aromatherapy and Massage, Therapeutic Massage, Homeopathy, Herbal Medicine and Reflexology.  Perhaps the most surprising of these to be included in a Christian project is Homeopathy.  This has been done in the light of years of personal experience that Homeopathy really works and its use is held in the context of constant prayer.

A NEW STAFF APPOINTMENT Since November 2009, it has been our pleasure to have in place a Therapies Outreach Worker who is now out and about in the community, seeking to share the good news of how complementary therapies can make a really positive difference to both physical and mental health. Clare Connors is being sponsored by SureStart West Riverside to work especially amongst young families.  If, however, any of you would like to find out more about the power of the therapies in your life, group or community, please do get in touch with Clare on 0191 2744722.

OUR CHARGING POLICY  We also have a very special charging policy that deliberately enables local residents and others who wish to travel from further afield to us to access therapies (and therefore the benefits of those therapies) which, in other places, are all too often more expensive than they can afford. 

From those in receipt of income-related state benefits or higher than the minimum level of Child Tax Credit, we only ask for £7.50 per hour long session.

For anyone else, our maximum charge of only £14 (plus £2.50 for homeopathic remedies) is still significantly lower than normal charges for the therapies that we offer if you go elsewhere.

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LISTENING IN THE NAME OF CHRIST

Listening was the starting point of our ministry.  Our understanding is that our need to listen is threefold: we must listen to ourselves, listen to others and listen to God.

In order to enable this, we offer introductory, intermediate and advanced listening training, based on the Acorn Christian Foundation's Christian Listening programme, enabled by our very own team of Acorn-accredited tutors.  Churches can make use of us, but so, equally, can non-Christian groups for whom the method of listening taught is just as valid.  

It is also possible to make an appointment with one of our trained listeners for a series of one-to-one free and confidential listening sessions.  In practice, however, we have found that what is most often valued by those who come through our door is the informal listening ear that we offer to all who wish to share their stories with us.  This informal listening takes place in the cafe that we run in St Margaret's between 10.30am and 2.30pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays - and it does, sometimes, change lives.  See 'The Soup Bowl' page of this website for greater details!

ANOTHER NEW STAFF APPOINTMENT  It has also been our pleasure to extend our staff team in the area of listening.  Jane Miller is new into our listening post and is now busy preparing teaching materials that she can take out into the community that will help parents to listen better to their youngest offspring.  So if you or your group might be interested in improving listening skills at the heart of the family, please do ring us on 0191 2744722 and ask Jane how she can help in this vital task. 

 Email us at time4youmanager@btconnect.com or telephone us (Tuesdays or Thursdays) on 0191 2744722 to find out more.