📖 Prison Chaplains (Townsville)

💙 Volunteer to change lives. Yours included.

This volunteer opportunity will help to provide Christian pastoral care to adult incarcerated people within Queensland correctional centres.

🌟 Be part of a welcoming and diverse volunteer teams that reflects the communities we serve. We are committed to supporting people to live life in all its fullness by valuing and respecting the unique experiences, perspectives, and contributions of every person, and by creating an inclusive, accessible, and supportive environment where everyone feels they belong. 🌟

📍 Location: Townsville Men’s & Womens Correctional Centre, 22 Dwyer Street, Townsville QLD 4811.

6 different service providers are represented at each correctional centre. Your team size will vary depending on the size of the centre.  You may have a number of other chaplains serving a centre on the same day.

✅ What you’ll be doing:

• Serve in an ecumenical team

• Provide weekly pastoral care in a correctional centre

• Distribute religious materials and pray with inmates

• Refer inmates to post-release services

• Lead Sunday services (6-week rotation)

• Support incidents and deaths in custody

• Attend monthly meetings and online training

• Complete 3 days annual in-service training (Brisbane)

🎁 What’s in it for you?

• Experience the joy of making a meaningful difference

• Enjoy social interaction with others

• Do something new and different

☑️ Skills and experience important for this role include:

• Knowledge of or willingness to learn Pastoral Care

• Some training in Pastoral Care

• Mature faith in Jesus Christ and regular church attendance

• Excellent listening and empathy

• Respect for people of all backgrounds

• Maintain confidentiality and strong professional ethics

• Follow State Chaplaincy Board & Queensland Corrective Services guidelines

• Intentional self-care practices

👉🏼 More info: Trained volunteer chaplains serve on a weekly roster as part of an ecumenical team providing non‑denominational pastoral care across 16 Queensland correctional centres, from Palen Creek to Lotus Glen. Pastoral care is confidential, non‑judgemental and inclusive, supporting inmates of all faiths, cultures, ages and genders, without proselytising, and in line with each person’s own spiritual journey.

Chaplains provide rotating Sunday faith services, distribute approved faith resources (such as Bibles and devotional materials), facilitate correspondence studies, and make referrals to counselling and re‑entry services. They may also assist during critical incidents, including deaths in custody and funerals.

The role is centre‑based and may involve travel, significant walking, and managed risk. Full training is provided. Chaplains must follow Queensland Corrective Services directions and are accountable to the Chaplaincy Team Coordinator and UnitingCare Queensland.

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Child safe, Child friendly

UnitingCare is committed to being a Child Safe, Child Friendly organisation and will:   

▪ Provide welcoming, safe and nurturing services for children   

▪ Implement measures to prevent child abuse and neglect within our services  

▪ Appropriately and immediately address child abuse and neglect if it does occur

▪ Abide by the Child Safe Standards and adhere to the Reportable Conduct Scheme  

Commitment to Safeguarding

We are committed in creating services and workplaces that are welcoming and safe for every person. We work together to protect children, young people, adults and the elderly from harm within our services and the communities we support. We speak up for their safety to ensure their voices are heard. Our recruitment and workplace practices reflect our dedication in preventing abuse, harm and exploitation across UnitingCare.

️‍❤️ UnitingCare’s Diversity, Inclusion, and Child Safety Statement ❤️

UnitingCare is committed to child-safe practices and to building a volunteer workforce that reflects the diverse communities we serve. We value cultural knowledge and lived experience, and we strongly encourage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to apply. To ensure our team mirrors the diversity of the children in our care, We actively invite volunteers from all backgrounds, including young people (15–24 years), people from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) backgrounds, people with disability, LGBTQIA+ individuals, and older people seeking purpose and connection.

UnitingCare is committed to equitable access and will provide reasonable adjustments to support all applicants. Please advise us of any accessibility requirements at the time of your interview.