Consultancy 2

Consultancy: 2
Emmaus is a charity which provides permanent accommodation for homeless individuals - the Companions. Each Emmaus Community supports itself by collecting, repairing and selling second hand furniture and other household goods. When a new community is set up, the leaders must quickly develop a range of policies and procedures covering the community’s property, the kitchens, the workshop, the office, the shop and so on.
The Manual of Procedures enables them to draw on the experience of existing Emmaus communities to produce a manual which reflects the circumstances of their particular community.

How the Manual was developed

The project was in two stages. Stage 1 consisted of visits to existing communities and collection of information. The stage concluded with a one day workshop for community leaders and trustees to design and agree the shape and content of the finished manual.

Stage 2 involved the detailed work on the various sections of the manual. Frequent, well structured communication between the consultant and experienced community leaders was an essential part of this process.

What the finished Manual contains

The Manual consists of an introduction, much of which covers the philosophy and ethos of an Emmaus Community, and eight separate sections, each covering one of the following areas of the work of a Community.

·	Companions

·	Employment

·	Health and Safety

Office

Shop

Kitchen

Workshop

Property

How the Manual is organised

Each of the eight sections consists of three parts.

·	A table of contents which, on the CD version, enables users to jump straight to the topic on which they want help.

·	Guidance. Information, advice, suggestions for creating procedures and examples of procedures from existing Emmaus Communities.

Documents. These help the leaders of new Communities to collect and record the information they need to keep the Community running smoothly. They are from a variety of sources, such as existing Emmaus Communities, the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development and the National Health Service. One of the documents in the Companions’ section is a generic version of the Companions’ Handbook, developed by existing Emmaus Communities.