Quality Youth Ministry Training… watch online with a cuppa (YFC Training Wall)

Finding space, opportunity and input for training can be a challenge.

Whether it’s finding space in the dairy or the budget for attending a training event, getting your team together for training, or just finding a good training resource, it’s not always easy.

Well, YFC are here for you. The YFC resource team have just launched an online library of training videos… all for free.

Why not:

• Watch one over a coffee break?
• Make a slot in a youth team meeting to watch and discuss one with your team?
• Send the link round to your team to watch with a cup of tea and a biscuit, and then chat about it as you set up for your next event?
• Ask for a slot in a staff meeting to watch a relevant one with the clergy and your staff team to help them understand what you do a bit better?

All the videos can be found here.

Let us know how you use them, which were most helpful and which ones you’d like to see more training around!

School assemblies for every season for everyone, from SPCK

Since 1999 assemblies.org.uk have provided high quality, instant access primary and secondary school assemblies written and tested by teachers and other assembly leaders.

They upload a new assembly every month and have archives of many thought-provoking assemblies, specifically targeted for the various Key Stages of the National Curriculum.

Why not give them a go?

Special and Additional Needs | Growth in Skills and Knowledge – Transformation for children, young people, and the Church

How can we welcome and be inclusive of children and young people with special and additional needs? The best place to start is by talking with the child/young person and their parents or carers to see what their individual needs are. But if you would like to explore some more general resources to get a broad understanding of the spectrum of special and additional needs, the Going for Growth team have some links that will help you.

Messy Church and children with additional needs

‘You are the heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with our ancestors. He said to Abraham, “Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.” When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you’ (Acts 3:25-26, NIV, emphasis ours).

These are the first words in a theological reflection on discipleship, Messy Church and disability, provided by Cristina Gangemi, Author ©October 2010.

Entitled The full belonging and active inclusion of children with disabilities and their families, in Messy Church groups and activities, you can read the full reflection here.

Could Welsh RE re-think lead to radical changes in UK schools? – BBC News

The possible renaming or revamping of religious education (RE) in Welsh schools has excited much comment – a lot of it positive, sparking hopes among those who want to see major changes to RE in schools across the UK.

Many argue that despite the UK becoming a more secular country over recent decades, the radicalisation of some youngsters in Wales and elsewhere means that a solid grounding in religious and ethical education has never been more vital.

The Welsh government minister for education and skills, Huw Lewis, told the Welsh assembly over the summer that he wanted to see a transformation of the current curriculum on religion to help combat extremism, with RE to be extended and renamed as “religion, philosophy and ethics”.

The aim is to allow children to “ponder ideas around ethics and citizenship and what it means to be a citizen of a free country”, with schools needing to “rise to the challenge of community cohesion”.

That followed a review of the curriculum in Welsh schools by Prof Graham Donaldson, a former chief inspector of schools, who urged pupils to be “ethical, informed citizens of the world”.

It also came after a major report on the English education system urged a radical overhaul of RE in English schools. The report was compiled by the former Education Secretary, Charles Clarke, and religious education expert Prof Linda Woodhead from Lancaster University.

You can read the whole article on the BBC News website here.

The plight of refugees continues to dominate the news…

The plight of refugees continues to dominate the news – with myths twisting amongst the facts. In June, Australia had Refugees Week, to allow churches focus on refugees. Although these two links (here and here)come from that Australian perspective, there is much in them to help inform leaders who may want to talk with children and young people about what’s happening in our country.

More material below:
This is the link for UK resources for Refugee Week in 2016
This is a position paper from the Churches Refugee Network 2014
A prayer for the refugee
A resource from the Church of Scotland to help young people explore immigration issues

New baptism texts from Common Worship in accessible language

Additional Baptism Texts in Accessible Language (authorized for use from 1 September 2015) are now available from the Church of England website and in a variety of formats from Church House Publishing.

New Youth Adviser for the Diocese of Winchester

We’re delighted that Sarah Long will start work next Monday, 7 September 2015, as Youth Adviser to the Diocese of Winchester. She’ll join Andy Saunders, Diocesan Children’s and Families Adviser, to bring our FCY team back up to full strength.

Sarah has been working most recently with Romance Academy, a national charity that helps young people both inside and outside the church to explore how to build healthy relationships. In addition to engaging directly with young people, she has had the pleasure of working with youth workers and parents across the UK to tackle tricky topics well with their teenagers.

Prior to this she was Youth director at St Paul’s Church, Camberley, heading up youth work in line with their vision “Living Christ in Camberley”.

Welcome, Sarah!

Looking for harvest resources?

If you’re looking for Harvest resources, the Going for Growth pages have loads. They’ve also got all-age worship ideas.

There’s also a pinterest page with links to various organisations who provide Harvest resources.