Chaplain’s placement just suits her to a Thai (From Dorset Echo)
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Chaplain’s placement just suits her to a Thai
7:00am Saturday 14th March 2009 in Search By Ruth Oliver
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Marketplace chaplain Louise Cook with Elaine Emmons at Orchid Cuisine Picture by Richard Crease ID: 8227597
ONE would not normally expect to find a chaplain popping up behind the prawn crackers and spring rolls in a Thai restaurant – well, not “on duty” anyway! But that’s exactly where you will find Louise Cook, the UK’s first “marketplace chaplain”, who has been assigned to a small business right here on our doorstep in Poole. Louise admits to loving Thai food, but assured me that was not the reason why she had taken the position.
Orchid Cuisine, a Thai restaurant owned by Elaine Emmons, is the first business in the UK to sign to Marketplace Chaplaincy, a national organisation providing a service to businesses. I met up with Elaine recently to find out why she felt it was so important to have a chaplain available for her staff.
“I feel that my staff could do with some independent support,” she said. “At times my staff may want to talk to me about their problems, but I am not trained to help them and my answers may be biased because I am their boss. “We all have issues at various different times of our lives that we need to talk about.
"There is tremendous value to my business in my staff being able to offload tjeor problems to a confidential and independent person.
"If I can help my staff to solve their problems, then they can be far more productive at work.”
She added: “I had a situation in my own family where I had to employ the service of a trained counsellor which cost me a tremendous amount of money – so I know how expensive counselling can be. “I feel it is very reasonable to have a chaplain from Marketplace Chaplaincy and I would encourage all small and medium-sized businesses to invest in one. You need to take care of your staff so that you have a good team around you.”
"There is tremendous value to my business in my staff being able to offload tjeor problems to a confidential and independent person."
Restaurateur Elaine Emmons
- For details on Marketplace Chaplaincy, ring Jonathan Martin on 07525 006042 or email jonathanmartin@mchap.co.uk.
