This year, we are inviting communities of faith across lutruwita/Tasmania into a conversation that matters deeply:
What do we need to do, and who do we need to be as a church, to faithfully live out our call to discipleship here in lutruwita/Tasmania?
We have listened to feedback asking for more clarity about the Presbytery's Charter Journey: this is a chance to be heard, to hear others, and together write down what faithfully following Christ looks like in Tasmania right now, and into the future, as we seek community, compassion and justice for all creation.
What you share will help shape what the Charter in Tasmania looks like, lived out in your communities.
| Stage / Phase | Date | Who | Reports and next steps |
| 1: Preparing | Dec 2025 -
Mar 2026 |
Project Working Group & co-design representatives | 
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| 2: Listening | 18/23 May | All congregations & faith communities | 
Individual reports:
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| 3: Discerning | 30 Jun-1 Jul | Presbytery committees, Leprena, UCA staff |
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| 4: Refining | 21-22-23 Aug | All congregations & faith communities |
Registrations are now open - please RSVP for our planning purposes. In the registration form choose the venue that suits you:
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| 5: Finalising | 14 Nov | Presbytery in Council |
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Read more about the Charter Journey process in the following two PDF documents:
What we heard during the Listening phase
The purpose of each gathering was to:
- hear voices, hopes, and needs from communities of faith across Tasmania
- strengthen relationships across communities
- discern shared themes of purpose and identity
- gather insights to guide next steps
What we heard is summarised in these reports:
- The Listening phase report includes a summary of what we heard from the online survey, online gathering, and the three regional gatherings.
- Individual reports: online survey, online gathering, Cam Rise gathering, Longford gathering, Kingston gathering.
Your next opportunity to engage and contribute: Refining the draft Charter
Who: all leaders and members of Uniting Church congregations and faith communities, walking together with Leprena UAICC Tasmania.
Location, date and time: save the date and plan to join one of three gatherings across Tasmania (with catering provided!)
In the registration form choose the venue that suits you:
Registrations are now open - please RSVP so we can cater for your needs |
Got more questions? (and see FAQs below)
If you have any questions please contact your friendly Presbytery Ministers Rev Marian Bisset in the north and Rev Peter Overton in the south, or the UCA Tasmanian Office:
- Rev. Marian Bisset (north): Marian.Bisset@victas.uca.org.au
- Rev. Peter Overton (south): Peter.Overton@victas.uca.org.au
- UCA Tasmanian Office: Tas.Office@victas.uca.org.au.
Jessica Connor Kennedy is the facilitator for the Charter process, and offers this short YouTube video as a welcome and introduction. For text captions simply click this link, or please click the CC or subtitles/captions button in the upper or lower right corner, depending on your viewer.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
- Q. What is the Charter? Will it be the same as previous “strategy” documents?
- Answer: The Charter will be a document that summarises the journey we take together over the coming years. Hearing and holding each others stories is important, and so is discerning where we want to focus our efforts and precious resources and faith communities. The Charter is where we will write down: shared priorities for mission and discipleship, ways we want to serve the local communities in which we are present, and guidance for how we want to address challenges we face together.
- Q. Is the time frame flexible?
- Answer: Yes. As always with large community conversations, we need to balance different wishes from all involved. Naturally, some people want to get to decisions faster, while others want to slow down. We have set a goal of having a draft charter to take to the Presbytery 'in council' meeting in November following a survey, 2 days of regional gatherings for Listening, and a 2 day retreat for Discerning. The process will be closely guided by the Project Working Group who will discern the balance of moving forward with time to discern. The process began with a Co-design session, led in January 2026, in late April and May we begin the Listening phase.
- Q. How does our Charter Journey process relate to the wider church projects Faithful Futures and Act2 ?
- Answer:
- Faithful Futures project is a collaborative effort between all eight presbyteries and the Synod to discern priorities, direct resources, and ensure we are equipped for the challenges and opportunities ahead, and it includes a Shared Vision and Shared Goals for the next five years, below.
- our Tas Charter journey process includes considering the Faithful Futures Goals as well as other matters that affect the Presbytery of Lutruwita/Tasmania such as property issues and communications and co-ordination across the Presbytery. Your wisdom and hopes from across lutruwita/Tasmania will help shape what the shared vision and goals for Faithful Futures looks like lived out in your communities.
- Act2 is a national initiative to discern, shape, and secure the Uniting Church’s future over the coming decades. It is a project of renewal and transformation designed to create sustainable, missional, and vibrant local communities of faith, rather than just maintaining the status quo. Act2 may well change the organisational structures of the church going into the future in which case the Presbytery, congregations and others will need to respond as this evolves.
- We expect the Charter for the Uniting Church in Tasmania to link with the Shared Vision and Shared Goals of Faithful Futures in ways that recognise the five shared goals as 'windows' through which to look at the life of the Uniting Church in local congregations and faith communities within the communities across Tasmania, and to respond to the call to follow Christ through the Shared Vision.
Click to visit the Faithful Futures website
Click to visit the Act2 website