Positive Activity Grants

A reminder that these grants are available and some churches have already been successful in getting funding. Details here.

Local Job opportunities

Youth Pastor
St Peter’s Baptist Church
c. £25K

We are a lively church of 400+ people working out of new purpose-built premises on the south side of Worcester. We are seeking a Youth Pastor to lead our extensive programme for young peole aged 11-23.

What you will do:

* motivate, inspire and co-ordinate a large team of youth leaders
* share your faith with unchurched young people
* disciple young Christians

What you need to be:

* a passionate follower of Jesus
* an excellent communicator with young people
* a proven leader in youth ministry

What you will get:

* shed loads of satisfaction
* top support from your colleagues
* oh...and a salary package c£25K

What to do next:
Get more info or ask for further details from Steve Thomson, St Peter's Baptist Church, Eden Close, Worcester, WR5 3UB, 01905 767090, steve@stpetersbaptist.org.uk
Closing date: January 18th 2010

Full-time Youth Worker

Stratford-upon-Avon Baptist Church

Minimum salary £18k, depending on experience (3 year contract)

• Continue and develop our youth ministry:
• Lead and grow work with young people aged 12-18
• Reach out to young people in the area
• Form links locally - church youth groups, schools and college
• Develop regular youth services
• Motivate team of volunteer leaders

Attributes:

• Committed Christian with desire to reach youth
• Qualified youth worker, experienced in Bible teaching and discipleship
• Good communicator, strong interpersonal skills, able to inspire

For more details contact:

Rev Graham Clay Tel: 01789-267393 Email: revgclay@gmail.com
Closing date: 22nd January 2010

Youthworker / School Chaplain

Rugby Team Ministry and Harris Church of England School

£18K to £22K

Where is God calling you?

Rugby Team Ministry and Harris Church of England School would like to help you answer that question.

From a secure base of the parish and school we are looking for a person with the personal security and vision to reach out to young people within and beyond our institutions with the love of God.

Salary between £18K & £22K depending on qualifications and experience CRB Checks will be undertaken. Closing date for applications: 29th Jan 2010

If you think this might be the place God is calling you to minister in, please contact Ms Claire Bult, Harris School, Harris Drive, Overslade Lane, Rugby, CV22 6EA, cbult@harris-school.co.uk

or call 01788 812549

Youth Minister and a Children and Families Minister

St Paul’s Church

Leamington Spa

£24-26k

St Paul’s is a lively church of all ages. We are clearly evangelical and open to the work of the Holy Spirit. The church is at an exciting point in its development; the two posts of Youth Minister (11-18s) and Children and Families Minister (0-11s) will seek to maximise potential growth and depth in these age groups.
You will

• love the Lord and have a heart for the age group in question
• be responsible for developing and implementing the church’s vision with this age group, being part of the senior leadership
• have experience of hands-on discipleship of this age group
• have a proven ability to recruit, envision, oversee and develop teams of volunteers working in ministry
• be able to form positive relationships with families, schools and the community to develop our outreach

For more information, see www.stpl.org.uk.
Salary £24-26k for 40 hours a week (a min of 30 hours pro rata equivalent may be considered).

Contact Jo Lockyer on 01926 427149: jo@stpl.org.uk for an application pack.
Closing date: 4 January 2010
Interviews: week commencing 18 January 2010.
Bringing Glory to Christ, Growth to His Church & Good News to the Community

Benefice Youth Worker

Parishes of Deddington, Clifton, Hempton and the Barfords

£18,000 to £22,000

Based in North Oxfordshire, our Benefice comprising the parishes of Deddington, Clifton, Hempton and the Barfords, is looking to recruit a youth worker to work with the children of our parishes and immediate local area. The role will support our church vision of “Working together as a church to reach and serve our communities with the good news of Christ.”
We are seeking a committed Christian, who holds a recognised youth worker qualification and has previous experience of working with young people in a Christian context. If you meet these criteria and are excited about working with a developing parish ministry then we want to hear from you.
Building on existing work already done, we want our youth worker to engage with children in both our primary school and in the local secondary school settings through a range of clubs and activities, with the aim of sharing the Good News of Christ and bringing them and their families to fellowship.
You will be helping the young people in our community explore the Christian faith and bring its relevance to their everyday lives.
This is a full time post, offering a salary of between £18,000 and £22,000 per annum depending on experience and qualifications.
This post is subject to an Enhanced CRB Disclosure.

For further information and an application form please contact Jennifer Childs, PCC Secretary at jennifer.childs@tiscali.co.uk or telephone 07774 608715.
Closing date for received applications is 18th December 2009.

Funding News

Fundign Central has again flagged up lots of opportunities for funding:
The new Music award
Awards for sustainable energy projects including work by charities and schools
Funding for Village halls (with restrictions)
Woodland awards
Youth Music Open grants Programme

As always,please do look carefully about all the information and exclusions for each fund.

Practical inspiration

Youth Ministry Course:
Practical inspiration for anyone involved in Christian youth work

Saturday 6 February 2010
Saturday 27 March 2010
Saturday 15 May 2010

Redcliffe's 2010 Youth Ministry Course will be held over three Saturdays between February and May. Each day is designed to provide fresh inspiration for youth workers and volunteers working in a Christian youth ministry context.

Each day includes input from expert speakers, interactive sessions, resources and plenty of opportunity to network.

Saturday 6 February: All together now… Young people and the spirituality of church life
How do you encourage young people to pray, to interact with all ages in the church, not just their youth group, and look beyond themselves to the needs of a hurting world?
Speakers include Joe Knight (24/7 prayer) and Emma Worrall (Underground, Open Doors)

Saturday 27 March: Discipleship with bite (and boots)
How do you encourage young people to get excited about (and sharing) their faith and engage with the Bible. And what are the practicalities of getting them 'out there' on mission?
Speakers include Dot Tyler (Emerging Generation), Fiona Bridges, (Urban Saints) and Mike Frith (Oscar)

Saturday 15 May: 17 again - engaging with youth culture
What's it like being a teenager today? What are the issues and pressures young people face – whether or not they have any church involvement? And what are the 'nuts and bolts' of youth work in an urban, or rural/semi rural context?
Speakers include Ian Henderson (The Message Trust) and Phil Knox (Youth for Christ)

Cost: £18 per day including buffet lunch and refreshments, £50 for all three days if booked in advance

To book:
A leaflet and booking form will be available for download soon.

Directions: Please see our directions page for details on how to find us.

The Chill

Come along to this FREE Community Festival!!

There'll be a live music stage hosted by Youthcom Radio 106.7, Skate Park, Ice Skating, T-Shirt Printing, Mural Painting, Tree Dressing,
Food, Arts & Crafts, Play Theatre and lots, lots more!!!!

Please contact Becky Maynard for further information (details are given below).

Sunday, December 06th, 2009

12:00 PM - 05:00 PM

Location
Cripplegate Park
New Road
Worcester, Worcestershire WR2 4QG


Contact
Becky Maynard
Email: BMaynard@worcestershire.gov.uk
Phone: (01905) 741210

Tryangle Awards

If you have some outstanding young people in your parish, consider nominating them for this year's Tryangle Awards. Details here.

The Tryangle Awards are a way of celebrating and recognising the profile of the vast majority of young people in the community who really do TRY, often with little recognition, to do their best!
Nominations are welcomed from anybody who has an involvement with young people. Each young person nominated will receive a certificate to show their efforts have been recognised. A panel of judges will then select winners in seven catagories:

• Bravery
• Achievements in the arts
• Achievements in music
• Achievements in sports or outdoor activity
• Good friends and carers
• Citizenship and environment
• Personal development

Nomination forms can be filled in online from 1st December.

Young Film Fund (UK)

First Light Movies provides grants to projects that enable young people to participate in all aspects of film productions. The funding is available to community and voluntary groups that work with young people aged between 5 and 18. Grants are available through three funding streams.
The Studio Awards provides grants of up to £30, 000 for between two and four films of up to 10 minutes.

The Script Awards provides grants of up to £3,000 for script writing projects that team young people with script professionals.

The Pilot Awards provides grants of up to £5,000 for one short film of up to five minutes in duration.

The next closing date for all three programmes is the 19th January 2010. For further information: www.firstlightonline.co.uk/funding/young-film-fund/

Widow's Might

Frontier Youth Trust have an exciting new Project:

We are just about to nationally launch our new StreetSpace project to engage young people on the street and in the community and we could really do with your help to make this possible.

For the last 3 years we have been piloting StreetSpace and it has been really effective at engaging young people and exploring new ways to grow church with them. The project has been welcomed by young people, the police, councils and local Christians and we have been inundated with requests to start similar projects across the UK.

So to make StreetSpace happen nationally, please could I ask you for a small amount of time and money! In these challenging economic times, we have become very aware of the value of small things and the impact a widows mite (Luke 21) donation can make.

If you could turn on your phone and text the word MITE to 82540 it would be really appreciated. Texts cost £1.50 (plus your standard network charge) and over a pound will go directly to the StreetSpace initiative.

My second request would be to ask you to pass this email onto all your contacts, put the information in your church newsletters, on your web sites or anywhere else that you would be able to in order to help us make this dream a reality. Appreciate it.

If you would like to know how StreetSapce works and how it might be able to work with you, please drop me a line. Apologies if you get this email more than once and do let me know if you would prefer not to receive news update emails.

Many thanks and happy forthcoming advent ....

Nigel
For donations from outside the UK or for larger donations to the 'MITE' initiative, please go to: http://www.widowsmite.org.uk/ You will then be able to make a donations to FYT and pay by paypal, credit or debit card.
--

PS Please text 'mite' to 82540 to enable FYT to launch

36 StreetSpace projects working with young people

on the streets over the next 3 years. Each text costs

£1.50 plus your standard network charge for a text.

Thanks to ASBOJESUS for the cool cartoon too.


Frontier Youth Trust, Unit 306f, The Big Peg, 120 Vyse Street, Jewellery

Quarter, Birmingham. B18 6NF. Charity No.: 1059328, Company No.: 3264908

Band with no Name in Worcester

Bible Society has details here of The Band with No Name at Christopher Whitehead School on Friday 11th December from 7pm.

FLOSS FUNDING

County Council's FLOSS scheme enters its fourth and final year
Teenagers from across Worcestershire are being urged by the County Council to get applying for its fourth - and final year - of Funding Lots of Super Stuff (FLOSS) cash.

Grants of up to £2,500 will once again be available for 13 to 19-year-olds to apply for from November 9 until February 12, 2010.

More than £990,000 has so far been awarded to young people throughout the county since the FLOSS grant-giving scheme was launched by the council's youth support team. Details of the county-wide allocation to date is as follows:

Bromsgrove £40,653
Malvern Hills £32,509
Redditch £33,193
Worcester £37,118
Wychavon £46,700
Wyre Forest £39,053
Councillor Liz Eyre, Worcestershire County Council's Cabinet Member for Children and Young People (12-19 years), said: "This the last chance for young people in Worcestershire to make a difference to the community they live in by applying for a slice of FLOSS funding.

"Many parts of the county have already widely benefited from FLOSS and we're keen for this to be the year that we receive a wider variety of applications than ever before as it's the final year we can use this funding to turn young people's ideas into reality."

FLOSS is aimed at giving 13 to 19-year-olds the chance to provide their local area with activities and projects their peers will benefit from. The final decision as to where the money will be allocated will be made by the FLOSS Management Group, which comprises of 12 young people from around Worcestershire.

People interested in finding out more should email floss@worcestershire.gov.uk or call Pam Hill on 01905 779893 or Kirsty Fraser on 01905 827489.

Anger Management

What? Enterprise is offering FREE anger management support sessions to unemployed 19-25 year olds in the Borough.

Currently sessions are planned for Monday 23rd November in Dudley and Monday 14th December in Stourbridge - venues to be advised.

The sessions will be run by Martin Hogg, who has a wealth of experience in helping people with their anger, runs successful anger management groups and trains on managing anger.

Please get in touch if you have anyone you think would benefit from this support. Alternatively, if you have a group of young people needing support, we may be able to arrange separate one-off events. Again, this would be free of charge, but must be completed within the next couple of months.

For more information, please contact The What? Centre on 01384-379992.

Promoting Well Being in Dudley

There is a small grant fund available for those of you working in Dudley for groups which promote mental well-being. If you are working with a youth or community group in this area there is a lunch on 25th November to advise you on applications. Ask me for more details.

Funding opportunities

A few things came up recently as potential funding sources from Funding Central.

If you're working with football teams there are funds for kit for juniors and improving goal posts.

There are funds for arts projects from the Paul Hamlyn fund and Elmley Trust.

Innovation Exchange can offer funding for work that seeks to work creatively with
Excluded young people - projects that aim to help young people that are excluded, marginalised or at risk. For example, there are currently more than 150,000 14-17 year olds not in education, employment or training.
Independent living - projects that enable disabled people to:
Have choice and control over the assistance and equipment required to go about their daily lives.
Have equal access to housing, transport, health, employment, education, and training opportunities.

Voluntary and Community Sector Grants

The fourth round of the vcs grants is now open - see here for details.

Mentoring Training

Our own Paul Wilcox is part of a team delivering a series of sessions on mentoring young people. If you’re looking to train up some of your teenagers as leaders or looking for some advice on working in one to one situations then this would be a fabulous session to attend Saturday 28 November 2009 at CPAS , Warwick, CV34 6NG. The usual cost is £25 but I am happy to subsidise places to £15 for leaders from churches within the Diocese of Worcester. Details here.

Edinburgh 2010: Youth Competition!

Next year the world church will be celebrating the Centenary of the World Missionary Conference held in Edinburgh in 1910. Christians from all over the world will meet together in Edinburgh and explore different ways of "Witnessing to Christ today". In 1910 young people were not well represented at the Conference, even though it was mainly organised by student Christian organisations, so Edinburgh 2010 is setting out to be more diverse. There are already three ways that young people can participate, and for two of them there are prizes involved. Check out their site.

Child Protection training sessions 2009-2010

Here are the dates and approximate locations of this year’s child protection training events.
2009
STOURBRIDGE Christchurch, Lye, Wednesday 30th September 7.30-9.30pm
WORCESTER St George, Magdalen Room, Tuesday 3rd November September 7.30-9.30pm
2010
HALESOWEN Lapal, St Peter, B62 0BH, Wednesday 10th February 10am-12pm DAYTIME
WORCESTER St Martins, London Road Monday 17th May 10am-12pm DAYTIME
MALVERN St Andrews Church Hall, Wednesday 9th June 7.30-9.30pm
STOURBRIDGE St Peter’s Pedmore Wednesday 15th September 7.30-9.30pm
BROMSGROVE St John the Baptist Church Hall, Wednesday 20th October 7.30-9.30pm
BREDON Church Rooms, Wednesday 17th November7.30-9.30pm

Remember that all those working with children and young people in churches in the diocese should have attended this course recently. If you would like to book places or if you can’t manage these dates but have a group of you who would like to arrange an evening for training please contact Judy Baker or go to the website.

Peru Trip

I’m looking for up to 6 young people who will be aged 18-25 in August 2010 to come with me to Peru as part of our diocesan mission trip. The group will be helping build churches/ schools and there will be opportunities for running arts/music projects with local children. Those participating will need to be able to secure enough funding to pay for flights and some other expenses. If you are interested or know a young person who would be interested contact me as soon as possible to secure a place.

Prison's week

Resources are available for churches wanting to engage in Prisons Week. This year’s theme is Hold Fast to Hope. Check out this link for drama sketches, service help, stories of hope and a PowerPoint presentation.

Youth Evangelism Fund update

Over the summer I read through the many excellent applications for the Youth Evangelism Fund and can announce that we submitted bids for over £40k which far exceeded my hopes. There are some fantastic young people out there with ingenious ideas for sharing their faith with other young people and they will be getting some money to do just that. The national panel judging the bids will be meeting in October and we should hear the news then. In Worcester we’ll be having a grand funding award evening in the Abbot’s Kitchen at the Old Palace on Friday 20th November. We’ll be showcasing the work the young people are planning to do with the money and inspiring others too.

Safeguarding Children & Vulnerable Adults

This statement from Robert Higham the Diocesan Secretary may help to clarify any questions people have regarding the Independent Safeguarding Authority

Some important information for parishes follows about the new Vetting & Barring Scheme to be administered by the Independent Safeguarding Authority.


These changes, following the lessons learned from the Soham murders, are intended to help protect our children and vulnerable adults.

You may have seen publicity in the form of packs of information sent out by the government concerning the new Vetting and Barring Scheme.

The VBS is a new scheme which is to be administered by the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA). It is being introduced in phases. The first phase begins on 12 October 2009, when additional "regulated activities" will be brought into force under the Vetting and Barring Scheme. This will significantly extend the scope of activities and workplaces covered by barring. It will be an offence for any barred person to work in regulated activities, and for any employer to employ someone he knows to be barred to work with children or vulnerable adults, either paid or voluntary. There will also be a new duty on bodies, including PCCs, to pass on information to the ISA about any individual who could be a risk to children or vulnerable adults.

There are currently discussions taking place between Archbishops Council staff and the ISA as to how to implement these changes and their effect on recruitment and safeguarding in the Church of England and the ISA has promised more specific guidance.

If you have a specific concern about someone's suitability to work with children or vulnerable adults please contact Maria Johnson, the Bishops Representative for Child Protection and Bishops Representative for Vulnerable Adults (maria.johnson@cofe-worcester.org.uk telephone 01886-853566)

As soon as we have more information we will let you know.

However, registration of individuals with the ISA for the new scheme will not start until October 2010 so there is no need for PCCs or Parish Representatives for Safeguarding to change the way they currently recruit volunteers or paid workers, including carrying out CRB checks.

(Both Child Protection training and Vulnerable Adults awareness training in 2009-2010 is available as advertised in the diocesan mailing of 21 August 2009)

Robert Higham

Diocesan Secretary

One World Week

Resources are now available for One World week this year. Check out their website for youth resources and interfaith resources for the 18th-25th October this year. Use with your youth group or with the wider church family.

Job Opportunities

vinvolved Youth Volunteer Advisor - East

£20,202 per annum

37 hours per week

Office base is in Droitwich. Work will cover Bromsgrove, Redditch and Wychavon.

Forming part of a team to assist in the development of a new vibrant youth volunteering project across the county.
- To inspire and engage young people to participate in volunteering opportunities
- To consult with young people to promote youth-led approaches to volunteering
- To champion youth-led volunteering through the creation of a county-wide Youth Action Team
- To reach out to young people who are under-represented in volunteering
Commitment to youth-led, inclusive and high quality work essential.
Experience of working with young people is essential.
Employment is subject to satisfactory enhanced CRB disclosure.

Closing Date: Friday 18th September 2009 12 noon.

Interview Date: Monday 28th September 2009.

Forms: To download an application pack.

Some Job Opportunities

Full-time Youth Worker

Christ Church Selly Park

£19 - £25K

Christ Church Selly Park, Birmingham is seeking a Full-time Youth Worker to exercise leadership in overseeing, co-ordinating and delivering our youth work we’re looking for a creative, energetic and inspiring leader, who is enthuisiastic about encouraging and discipling young people.
We want someone who is interested in working in a growing church that seeks to be at the heart of its local community.

For more information, www.christ-church-selly-park.org.uk

Closing date October 21

Youth Workers

Diocese of Gloucester

£24,481 – £29,230

Our Children and Young People’s Department is seeking to appoint two dynamic and inspiring youth workers to develop work with young people across the Diocese. Both these posts are offered on a fixed term basis due to their funding arrangements. They are new posts and will provide the successful candidate with diverse and rewarding roles.
Affiliated Schools Officer
(Initially a fixed term three year post)
£24,481 – £29,230
This newly created post provides an exciting chance to work alongside affiliated church secondary schools and associated communities/ parishes. This post offers a new opportunity for an appropriately qualified/experienced creative, self-starter to develop a youth work approach in a school context.
Youth Development Officer
(Fixed term, full-time three year post)
£24,481 – £29,230
This new post will provide young people with new opportunities for discipleship and participation across the diocese, by working specifically with them, and with church leaders, and volunteers.

To find out more about the Diocese of Gloucester visit our website
You can also download all the information about both posts including the person specification, job description, and the application form which can be sent in hard copy or replied to on-line.

The closing date for both applications is 8th October 2009.
For the Affiliated Schools Officer, interviews will be on 19th October.
For the Youth Development Officer, interviews will span a two day process on 22nd and 23rd October.

Youth Co-ordinator

Aldridge Parish Church

up to £18,000 pa

Praying - building - growing

Do you….

• love young people?
• want to make the Bible connect with them?
• long to see them mature as disciples of Christ?
• want to see them come to Christ?
• have the vision to care for them?
• want to be part of a lively and thriving Church?
• want to be supported and encouraged by a strong staff team?

If yes…
we want to hear from you as we need a new Youth Co-ordinator

• to lead and organise the youth work
• to head up our existing deeply committed volunteer youth leadership team
• to inspire and manage up to 200 young people
• to be a role model of Jesus Christ to our young people
• to help young people take their place in the Church

We need…

• a mature and lively Christian with a real passion for God with proven ability with young people
• a team player
• someone who wants to grow in their faith and as a person

Interested…

• Start date Autumn 2009
• Salary up to £18,000 pa
• 6 weeks holiday

See www.aldridgeparishchurch.org for job specification and check out www.aldridgeyouthfellowship.co.uk

Mediabox funding

Media Trust opens new Mix Mediabox fund for youth-led projects
Grants on offer for schemes that bring different groups together
Communications charity the Media Trust has opened a new £1.2m fund for charities and community groups to set up youth-led media projects.

The Mix Mediabox will offer grants of between £5,000 and £20,000 to groups setting up projects in which 13 to-19-year-olds explore community cohesion. The total value of the fund is £1,240,000.

A Media Trust spokeswoman said the fund, run in partnership with the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Communities and Local Government department, was particularly looking to support projects that brought young people from diverse ethnic and economic backgrounds together.

She said the Media Trust was encouraging applications from east and north-east England and Yorkshire and Humberside, which had been underrepresented in previous rounds of funding applications.

The fund is open for applications and the deadline is 21 September.

Charities, trusts and local authorities can apply for grants from the scheme, which is delivered by a consortium led by the trust and First Light Movies in partnership with Skillset and the UK Film Council.

Sad news

Many of you will have heard of the sad death of Tony Ballard. Members of our diocesan youth council number among his friends and many other young people within the diocese may well have benefitted from knowing this young man whom Bishop John has described as "a generous hearted boy who loved life and lived it to the full".

If you feel you need help in supporting young people who are grieving or want to direct families to places of support, consider contacting either the Child Bereavement Charity (Formerly the Child Berevement Trust) who provide pages specifically desinged for families, children and young people with leaflets you can download for young people. The Noah's Ark Trust operates locally and can offer local support to teenagers and others.

Hope 09 in Malvern 2nd-5th July

Hope09 Fun day and work around the community at Duke's Meadow 2nd -5th July
There is a sign up meeting, complete parental consent forms, CRB disclosures, pick up HOPE T-shirts 7:30 pm Thurs 2nd at Malvern Evangelical Church
5 o'clock Friday 3rd July meet at MEC to walk over as a group to the Pickersleigh Centre
From 8 o'clock Saturday 4th at the Pickersleigh Centre, Sherrard's Green Road and Duke's Meadow in preparation for
12 o'clock start of Fun Day on Saturday on Dukes Meadow.
United Hope09 worship/celebration at 10:30 am on Sunday 5th on Dukes Meadow with balloon prayers(!)

Funding Opportunities

Check out the new site from WAVOCC for all kinds of funding opportunities in Worcestershire.

You may have seen in the news an article about young people having the chance to bid for a share of £30,000 for POSITIVE ACTIVITIES. Details are here.

ATC Chaplains

There are two vacancies for support to young people in the age range of 13 - 18 in a uniformed organisation. Generally the youngsters will not have a religious background. There is one vacancy in Worcester and one in Kidderminster.

The positions are unpaid but expenses can be recovered. The appointments are as Chaplains in Air Training Corps squadrons.

If anyone is interested please contact, in the first instance, Canon Eric Knowles, Wing Chaplain ~ West Mercian Wing, Air training Corps.

Tel: 01684-567439

E-mail: skypilot@homecall.co.uk

Fun in the Sun

This from Joel Thomas in Worcester:

What: Join us for 3 afternoons of Fun in the Sun! Go-karting, field games, BBQ and much more!



Who: If you're aged 11-17, then this is for you and your youth leader!



When: Wed 29th - Fri 31st July (1.30pm - 5.00pm, except Friday which will finish at 7.30pm)



Where: The Moat House, Cotheridge, Worcester, WR6 5LY



Cost: £3 for all 3 days!



More Info: Please feel free to contact Joel on 07856288978 for more information


I'm sure you'll agree, £3 for three afternoons of activities is very cheap! It would be great if you could join us for this event, please let me know ASAP if this is something you'd be interested in coming along to with some of your youth, so that I can send out the necessary information pack with the go-karting forms, and get a rough idea of the numbers coming (it is necessary for the youth leader to also come along with any of their youth).

Happiness Arts Project

There is an opportunity for your community group to explore 'Happiness' using art with artists from Multi Storey based in West Bromwich. This will form part of a Black Country wide project on the theme of 'Happiness'. The good news is that funding has already been found through the Black Country Arts Partnership so this opportunity is absolutely FREE!

The group can be of any age or background but needs to be one that meets regularly. Other participating groups in the Black Country are sheltered women, young Somali men, older people, deaf people, Yemeni women and South Asian women.

If your group is interested you need to be able to commit to the following;



* Providing an appropriate space or room for the group to meet and hold sessions.
* 10 hours of art workshops or 5 sessions of 2 hours or equivalent (e.g A weekend)


The sessions need to take place between the 28th June and August 14th.

If you are interested please contact one of the people below by Friday 26th June at 5pm;

Fred Richings Dudley Arts Officer 01384 815540 or fred.richings@dudley.gov.uk Or
Claire Carter Happiness Coordinator on 01694 731 759 or claire@creativityteam.co.uk

First Chance Harvey

The Damaris Trust has resources for taking groups to the cinema and then running a discussion soon afterward or later. Check out their invitations, a poster, discussion notes and film clips.

Put some bounce into summer

If you're thinking of adding some bounce to your summer events by hiring a bouncy castle this summer, but are worried about safety issues, check out this website called PIPA which helps you understand whether or not the company from whom you're hiring is a safe practitioner.

Raising Awareness

AWARENESS WORKSHOPS

Monday 22nd June 2009

at Christ Church, High Street, Lye

(ample free car parking available behind the church)

Free refreshments provided throughout the day, including buffet lunch

This is an opportunity to highlight and raise awareness of the needs and views of the young people you care about, and a chance to meet people from other voluntary youth organisations

MORNING SESSION ~ DRUG AWARENESS

AFTERNOON SESSION ~ ANGER MANAGEMENT & CONFLICT RESOLUTION IN YOUTH SETTINGS

9.30-12.30 ~ DRUG AWARENESS with NEALE PILKINGTON

Ø Up-to-date information about drugs in an easily understandable form.

Ø Aims : to give participants knowledge and awareness about drugs and drug issues to allow them to make informed judgements about situations in their communities.

Ø Objectives :

o Identify different types of drugs and what they do

o Gain knowledge of the Misuse of Drugs Act and other related legislation

o Explore why people take drugs

o Explore the language used around drugs through the media and other sources

o Consider concepts of addiction, dependency and peer pressure

o Consider the key signs and symptoms of drug use

o Look at the moral dilemmas around drug use

o Explore own attitudes towards drugs

Ø Target Audience -

o Staff in contact with the public

o Parents concerned about young people's drug use

o Community members concerned about drug use in their communities

This workshop is delivered in a way to encourage discussion and debate. It is structured in line with Government drugs strategy and is relevant to those wishing to gain DANOS accreditation.

12.30-1.30 ~ Free buffet lunch provided

1.30-4.30 ~ ANGER MANAGEMENT & CONFLICT RESOLUTION IN YOUTH SETTINGS with MARTIN HOGG

Martin Hogg is an Anger Coach and experienced counsellor working in the West Midlands providing specialist Anger Management to young people and adults in groups and one to one. His company, Citizen Coaching, is a not-for-personal profit social enterprise providing personal development training across Birmingham and The Black country, working with a diverse client base including three councils, The Youth Service and the private sector.

In this workshop Martin will talk on:

Ø Anger Management and Young People ~ How anyone can learn the three key skills to support young people who needs help with their anger.

Ø Top tips to resolve conflict in youth settings.

Ø Towards challenging behaviour ~ a blueprint for improving challenging behaviour.

This will be an interactive session with ample opportunity to debate anger issues in young people.

Seasonal Thoughts

Paul Bayes has flagged up an initiative for Advent/Christmas this year. I know this may seem a long way off but if you fancy getting your church involved in setting up a nativity scene in your local shopping centre, have a look at what it's all about here.

Job Opportunities

West Bromwich & District YMCA, a thriving Christian charity, is looking to recruit two key individuals: a Head of Family Support & Childcare Services and a Young Person & Residents Participation Worker to develop and deliver its expanding services.



1. Head of Family Support and Childcare Services



a. Purpose: To provide strategic leadership and empowering management for a fast-growing department of c.65 staff delivering a range of children’s and family services (e.g. nurseries, extended school facilities, Children’s Centres) in partnership with statutory, voluntary, and church partners across Sandwell Metropolitan Borough.

Responsible for: c.65 staff, inc 4 managers

Responsible to: Chief Executive

Keywords: Leader; Strategic; Networker; Visionary; Enabler;
Performance; Manager, Christian.

Remuneration: £34-38K + benefits, inc free gym membership

Location: Sandwell Boroughs

To start: ASAP

Hours: 37.5 hours a week



CRB clearance is a requirement. Also, because this a Senior Management Team position with the YMCA, which operates from a clear and inclusive Christian ethos, in accordance with the Employment Equality (Religion and Belief) Regulations 2003, there is a Genuine Occupational Requirement (GOR) for the Head of Family Support and Childcare Services to be an active Christian.



2. Young Person & Resident Participation Worker



a. Purpose: To support young people and residents to participate in decision-making within the life and mission of the YMCA at local and national level, as well as within the local community, and to communicate the Christian ethos of the YMCA movement:

Responsible for: 0 staff

Responsible to: Personal Development & Learning Co-ordinator

Keywords: Relational; Community; Empowering; Participation;
Communication; Youth Work; Christian.

Remuneration: £19-22K + benefits

Location: West Bromwich

To start: July 2009

Hours: 37.5 hours a week



CRB clearance is a requirement. Also, because the post-holder is required to actively demonstrate and communicate the YMCA’s clear and inclusive Christian ethos, in accordance with the Employment Equality (Religion and Belief) Regulations 2003, there is a Genuine Occupational Requirement (GOR) for the Young Person & Resident Participation Worker to be an active Christian.





West Bromwich & District YMCA is a thriving and well-respected Christian charity that delivers a range of community services across Sandwell Borough, including:

* Childcare – Children’s Centre (across 4 sites); two major nurseries (130+ spaces); two Out of School Clubs (100 spaces); Teenage Pregnancy Project;
* Supported housing – supported housing (82 residents); supported lodging scheme
* Healthy living and fitness centre – gym; sports hall; dance studio; café
* Community Learning Services

Incentive plus

If you're looking for some targetted resources for working with young people in relation to specific social, emotional or behavioural skills then check out Incentive plus who have just recently published their latest catalogue.

Resources include Pip Wilson's Blob feeling ball and many other great ideas!

Autism Awareness Training

WCVYS are offering a free training day on the topic of Autism on Tuesday 30th June at the Girlguiding Worcestershire meeting room (Acre Lane, Droitwich). If you're interested contact Jo Chester.

Mini Mediabox

Media Box have started a new strand of funding for young people producing their own creative media projects. This one is for smaller organizations (turnover under £100k) and grants can be anything from £500-£5,000. Check it out. This means they now have funding streams for small medium and large so whatever your organization size, if you are young people or are working with young people in a creative project, you can look at some funding.

Secret Millionaire Fund

If you've seen the show the Secret Millionaire, you'll be familiar with the way that people have offered money to community groups within particular localities. The Big lottery Fund and Channel 4 have now launched a new joint fund called the Secret Millionaire fund:

"The Big Lottery Fund and The Secret Millionaire have teamed up to give viewers of the programme a chance to act on the charitable inspiration fuelled by the show. Lottery funding worth £1 million has been lined up for people to apply for, or nominate projects to apply for grants of between £300 and £10,000 from the Secret Millionaire Fund.

From here you can nominate or apply for The Secret Millionaire Fund.

• nominate a community project.
  
  You can propose a community project or organisation you think would benefit from BIG funding. BIG will then contact the organisation to see if it is eligible to apply for this small grants scheme and send out the relevant information.
• apply directly.
  
  If you have an idea for a project that can bring real improvements to the lives of communities, and can pass a simple eligibility test (see information below), you can apply to Secret Millionaire Fund.

In both cases Lottery grants are awarded following an application and asseesment process which takes up to 8 weeks. For more information see the link to the right.

If your application to The Secret Millionaire Fund is successful Channel 4 (or RDF Media the production company who make the programme) might choose you for filming that will appear on the Secret Millionaire website and possibly in future editions of The Secret Millionaire. You will be asked to opt in to this at the point of application. Accepting or declining will not affect the outcome of your application."

Responding to challenging Behaviour

At Inspire we discussed the issue of behaviour. If you weren't able to be there but feel the need to look at the issue of working with young peopel with challenging behaviour then you could try the following session:

Responding to Challenging Behaviour training with Nigel Pimlott of Frontier Youth trust:
Gloucester 6 June. info and booking.

Youth Work on the Edge

Advance notice - a network conference for those Christian based youth workers working with young people on the edge, outside the church, in hard to reach settings etc. September 2-3. Birmingham. A partnership event with FYT, Worth Unlimited, East to West, Living Well Trust, Church Urban Fund, 24/7 Prayer network. More details (including the title !!) to follow just as soon as they are available.

Summer Coffee bar

If you’re going to be in Worcester during the summer, Ashley from Worcester Are Schools Project is going to be running a summer coffee bar in St Helen’s with opportunities for sports and drama workshops courtesy of the sports and drama teams from Youth For Christ. There will also be worship at the end of each week, a barbecue and much more fun. Keep an eye on the WASP website for details.

Independence Day

If you’re in the Redditch area, the churches are organising a day to encourage young Christians over the weekend of Independence day 3rd-4th July. There’ll be a worship evening on Friday 3rd July and a day conference on Saturday 4th July about passion purpose and power, encouraging young people how to be Godly guys and Godly gals. Contact Stu Avis for more details.

Salt ‘n’ Light

If you loved Rock the Cathedral, you’ll be pleased to hear that the youth council are running an event on 12th September this year. Salt ‘n’ Light is a day (4-9pm) to encourage young Christians through workshops, prayer and worship. The Relentless Craving who were so popular at Rock the Cathedral are coming down to us again and the new line-up of Formal Affair will also be playing. Bishop David will also be joining us to share some wisdom.

ALM training

Do want to think more deeply about your role and how to understand children and young people and help them develop? Or do you want to know more about how teams work and how you might work with other young people in your local community? As part of the Authorised lay Ministry training starting in September, Emma Pettifer and I will be training those working with children and young people. See the enclosed flier and check out the diocesan pages for more details.

Latest resources

I’ve added a few things to our resource library since our last mailing:
In addition to the Mixing it up with The Simpsons book we now have season four of The Simpsons on DVD so you can borrow both and use the clips suggested in the book. We also now have The Miracle Maker not just on video but on DVD (3 copies). Another great new DVD resource for the diocese is called Talking About Prayer. This has over 20 short films addressing questions such as Why should we pray? What happens when we pray? And How do we pray? With wisdom from the likes of Beth and Matt Redman and R. T. Kendall. I’ve also invested in a few new books of games so as the summer sun breaks through, think about getting your young people outside! If you want some more inspiration for that why not take a look at the pages for those working with young people over at the Christians in Sport website for information about events, ideas for using sport as part of Bible Study and for free downloads.
We also now have a Playstation 2 with singstar and buzz. If you fancy trying out this resource with your youth group before investing in it for yourselves or if you just want a karaoke/quiz night as a one off, get in touch!

We now have the first few iCans. These are self-contained resource pots with everything you need to run a particular bible study, discussion, activity or worship session. Details of those now available and those that will be coming soon are on the separate flier. If you have any particular session you would like featured in these resources, please do get in touch.

Spirited Arts: Art Competition

The NATRE (National Association of Teachers of Religious Education) are running a competition to help students explore their spiritual ideas, questions and beliefs. Each year the competition sets 5 themes that students need to respond to through art, and once again this year they are themes that will get them talking, thinking, debating and questioning for themselves.

2009 themes:

Mystery!
Open Minded!
Life is Sacred
Justice for Everyone
Who is God?

Download the powerpoint that you can use to promote the competition and see previous entries here.Or see the Galleries here.

Download the pdf with further instructions and guidelines here.

Final note...NATRE especially want to engage 16-19s with the competition this year, so there are £100 prizes available for this age group!

Closing date, 31st July 2009.

Hagley Lay Worker

Hagley Free Church (see here for more details)
Salary £18 - 20k


An Inter-Denominational Church Established in 1905 seeks a lay worker to extend its witness in the community by launching fresh expressions of church emphasis on children, young people and families.
Sharing Christ’s Love in North Worcestershire
Salary £18 - 20k;
full-time three year post (Part-time considered)
Further details from Martin Heathcock, 01562 884677 or email

Applications by 31 May

We love our youthworker

The fantastic we love our youthworker charter has now launched. There are lots of resources including the wonderful Dave Walker's cartoons especially commisioned for the charter.If you are part of a church which employs a youthworker, check out their 7 point charter:

We will pray and support
We believe that our youth worker needs spiritual support in their work with young people.
We promise to pray for our youth worker and keep their needs a high priority in the church’s prayer life.

We will give space for retreat and reflection
We believe that taking time to think and pray is just as essential for our youth worker as organising events and meeting young people.
We promise to encourage our youth worker to use part of their schedule to give space for retreat, reflection and personal development.

We will provide ongoing training and development
We believe that learning the skills of youth work is an ongoing process and that it’s important to continually invest in professional development.
We promise to set aside time and money to provide this for our youth worker.

We will give a full day of rest each week
We believe that taking regular time off helps maintain our youth worker’s passion and energy for their work with young people.
We promise to actively encourage our youth worker to take a day away from their role each week to do something different.

We will share responsibility
We believe that having a youth worker does not release the rest of the church from our responsibilities towards young people.
We promise to encourage everyone to play a part in volunteering, praying for or supporting young people.

We will strive to be an excellent employer
We believe that it’s important to have clear structures and procedures for recruiting and employing a youth worker, and to provide supportive management structures.
We promise to follow good practice guidelines in the way we employ our youth worker.

We will celebrate and appreciate
We believe it’s vital to acknowledge what our youth worker is doing and the commitment they have made to work with young people in our church.
We promise to make sure our youth worker knows they are appreciated and we will celebrate their achievements.

I'm so pleased to see that this is finally here. All churches employing youthworkers wiull get so much more out of their youthworkers by following this.

I can almost hear my blog readers asking - what about we love our vicar/organist/sunday school teacher/curate/flower arranger/verger/chorister/warden/deacon/cleaner/worship leader/house group leader/children's worker/steward/lay reader/evangelist*?

Well perhaps this should spur us on to look at all those whom churches employ and all those who give their time for free.

*delete as applicable

Christians in Sport

Take a look at the pages for those working with young people over at the Christians in Sport website for information about events and some ideas for using sport as part of Bible Study and for some free downloads.

Call Waiting Conference

There is a special conference for those aged 16-19 who are considering going into ministry.

Take a look at their website or download the application form.

It costs just £50 and bursaries are available towards that too.

If you're a little outside that 16-19 age bracket they also run another conference for you! Details on the same page.

Other Funding Opportunities

The Lankelly Chase Foundation: Arts programmes, no deadlines, trustees meet every 2 months

Size of grant available: £10,000 - £15,000 a year for up to 3 years

Aims and outcomes of funder: Projects offering excellent art experiences to vulnerable 11-21 year olds

Additional information: Registered charities only can apply

Contact details: Telephone 01235 820044

E-mail: enquiries@lankellychase.org.uk

The Elephant Trust: Next application deadlines 14th April and 19th June 2009

Size of grant available: Up to £2,000

Aims and outcomes of funder: Commitment to supporting artists and institutions
departing from routine and signalling new, distinct and imaginative sets of possibilities

Additional information: Funding priority - artists and small organisations/galleries.

Contact details: 020 7922 1160

E-mail: ruth@banksidelofts.freeserve.co.uk

Church and Community Fund

Next deadline for applications 22nd April 2009 Church and Community Fund

Size of grant available: Up to £15,000

Aims and outcomes of funder: Community projects run by parish churches, deaneries, dioceses and other bodies connected to/working in partnership with the Church of England

Additional information: Projects must promote, aid and further the work of the Church of England. Capital and revenue grants available

Contact details: Telephone 020 7898 1000

E-mail: ccf@c-of-e.org.uk

Medianet Academy

This June, the Churches Media Council is again running the Medianet Academy, a free 3-day training course for young Christians (18-35) who want to work in the media. The course will offer trainees the chance to get hands-on experience in either video, audio or web production. It’s great experience for the CV; past trainees have gone onto get jobs at the BBC and in commercial radio. Please do spread the word among your diocesan networks and get in touch with me if you have any questions. I attach the flyer and poster, as well as some blurb below.

Free training for young Christians wanting to work in the media
8-10 June 2009, Swanwick, Derbyshire
The Churches’ Media Council is running a 3-day training academy this June to help young Christians to break into the exciting world of the media.

They are looking for 16 young Christians to produce a mock episode of a reality TV show called ‘Angels and Demons’ using video, audio and the web. The Academy is a 3-day training course where they will learn new skills and get some great experience for their CV. Successful applicants will be trained by industry professionals as part of a multimedia team.

Participants from last year’s course described it as “constructive, fun and entertaining”, “fantastic” and even “life-changing”!

Training and accommodation are all provided free of charge. All participants have to pay for are their travel and a £30 admin fee on registration.

For more information or to download an application form, visit or call 0845 652 0027.

The closing date for applications is Friday 15 May 2009.
Curious??? ... Take a peek at the output of last year’s academy

Job opportunities

Schools Worker
Organisation: The Feast
Salary: £21,000 - £23,000
Location: Sparkhill, Birmingham
Closing Date Fri 1 May 2009
Description Salary: £21,000 - £23,000 plus expenses
The Feast is a newly formed charity set up to develop work amongst Christian and Muslim teenagers. The charity is building on 8 years experience of this work by Youth Encounter
If you . . .
• Have relevant experience of schools or youth work
• Are committed to promoting and leading encounters between Christian and Muslim young people.
• Enjoy working in schools, churches and the community
Contact Details Then contact Andrew Smith, 0121 772 2722.
Closing date: Friday 1st May. Interviews 14th May.

Director of Church and Schools Resource
Organisation: Youth For Christ
Salary: £26,213 – £31,677
Location: Halesowen, Birmingham
Closing Date Thu 23 Apr 2009

YFC is part of Youth for Christ International, which specialises in communicating the Christian faith to young people.

This is an exciting opportunity to head up the Church & Schools Resource department delivering British Youth for Christ’s mission strategy.
An opportunity to lead YFC’s vibrant Church and Schools Resource team. Directing the development of resources such as Rock Solid, Mettle and ExploRE, and residentials such as Fort Rocky, you will have an opportunity to further establish YFC as a key provider of resources to both churches and schools. Through liaising with denominational leaders and key educationalists you will be aware of new opportunities and partnerships available to YFC in order to maximize effectiveness.

These are just some of the opportunities in which the Leadership Team member of Church & Schools Resource will become involved.

Applicants are expected to demonstrate effective skills in self-expression, both verbal and written, proven management ability, clear vision, imagination to see new opportunities and the ability to work as part of a team.

There is a Genuine Occupational Requirement for this post to be filled by a committed evangelical Christian. Regulation 7(2) of the Employment Equality (Religion or belief) Regulations 2003 applies.

Salary in the range of £26,213 – £31,677 a year according to experience

Closing date: 23rd April 2009 Interview date: 08th May 2009

Contact Details For further details please contact Leon Coates or Chris Nightingale on 0121 502 9620,

YFC is an investor in people and works towards equal opportunities.

Christian Gap Years

Some older teens may now be thinking about what they might do before or after college/uni. If they're thinking of doing a gap year, you might like to suggest they have a look at some of the following:

Oasis 360 - a gap year with a difference.
Christian Aid
Time for God
Year for God
Careforce
Transform (with tearfund)
YWAM
Youth For Christ in the UK and Abroad
DNA
Soul Survivor
BMS

and if you think you can't afford a gap year, check out Platform2 that seeks to engage those who can't afford to jet off aroudn the world.

If a member of your congregation has had a good experience of a gap year, I would love to hear from them to share their experience with others who are considering it.
*Now with a few updates from youthblog

Various Funding Opportunities

(Whole Diocese)
YOUTH EVANGELISM FUND
FLOSS
The Links Foundation: Applications to be submitted four weeks before board meetings. The board meets four times per year (dates of meetings are updated on website).

Size of grant available: up to £20,000

Aims and outcomes of funder: Advance people's education, reduce significant disadvantage, assist those in conditions of poverty or distress and provide recreational or other leisure time activities.

Contact details: Telephone: 01642 236 486 or E-mail



Home Office Community Fund: Closing date 12:30pm Friday 3rd April 2009

Size of grant available: Up to £10,000 per organisation per annum over 3 years

Aims and outcomes of funder: To support projects that help to reduce knife and gun crime, changes the negative influence of peer groups, prevents young people from becoming involved in knife and gun crime and breaks the cycle of young people re-offending.

Additional information: Projects must work with children and young people under the age of 25 years.

Contact details: Telephone: 0845 603 1869 or E-mail


Biffaward Small Grants: Rolling programme, no deadlines for applications
(Much of the Diocese - check here for eligibility)
Size of grant available: £250 - £5000

Aims and outcomes of funder: To enable communities to improve local amenities and to conserve wildlife.

Additional information: Eligible projects must be site-based with ten miles of a Biffa operation and ten miles of an active landfill. (within or near the diocese are

• Worcester Depot, Guiness Park Farm, Leigh Sinton, Nr Branford, Worcester, WR13 5EQ
• Waresley Landfill Site (883)Unit 100a, Hartlebury Trading Estate, Hartlebury, Kidderminster, DY10 4JB
• Gloucester Depot, Hempstead House, 319 Bristol Road, Gloucester, GL2 5DN
• Birmingham Depot, Foxyards, Bean Road, Tipton,DY4 9AQ

Contact details: Telephone: Cath Leverseidge 01636 670051 or E-mail




The Tesco Charity Trust Community Awards:
Closing date for applications for projects that support the elderly and children with disabilities is 31st March 2009. Applications to support children's education and welfare will re-open on the 1st May 2009.

Size of grant available: £1000 - £5000

Aims and outcomes of funder: Projects that support the elderly, adults and children with disabilities.

Additional information: Previously funded projects include; day trips for the elderly, playground equipment in schools and local communities, sensory gardens and luncheon clubs.

Contact details: Telephone: 0845 61235

Web Site Address: www.tescoplc.com (in search box type Charity Trust)

B&Q One Planet Living Awards: Next deadline 27th March 2009

Size of grant available: up to £10,000

Aims and outcomes of funder: Projects that aim to enhance the local community to support activities that reduce the environmental impact on the world's natural resources.

Addtional information: Projects must either; save energy, conserve nature, support local culture and heritage and involve the local community in growing fruit and vegetables. Environmental groups, community groups, sports clubs and charities can apply.

Contact details: 0845 300 1001


Futurebuilders Small Organisation Tender Fund

Futurebuilders' new Small Organisation Tender Fund offers grants to small third sector organisations who need small sums of money to help them tender successfully for specific public sector contracts. Grants are invested in amounts up to 10% of the contract, with a maximum investment of £15,000. For more information visit here.


The Adventure Capital Fund
Funding to develop the sustainability of young social enterprises
(ACF) has announced that it is accepting applications under its Business Development Grant Scheme. The ACF offers a range of investments and support to develop stable and sustainable community based enterprises. Under the grant scheme funding up to £15,000 is available to support community enterprises in their early stages of development by developing their skills and capacity. Eligible costs could include: legal fees, technical assistance and advice, training, business planning, market research and feasibility studies. To be eligible for funding organisations need to:

* Serve one or more clear communities of place, interest or identify
* Be established within the community that they seek to serve and have members of that community involved in and represented in the management and decision-making processe
* Be looking to use entrepreneurial methods to achieve social goals.

The next closing date is the 14th March and will re-open for a second funding round from 4th May until 29th May 2009.
(DUDLEY area only)
£70,000 still available under Grassroots Grants scheme for small voluntary and community organisations in the Dudley Borough. Funding is available for purchasing equipment and expanding existing activities. Groups can apply for between £250 - £5000. Application forms are available from The Birmingham Foundation.
For more information contact: 0121 322 5560.

Dudley Children's Trust Small Grants: Closing date for applications is 18th May and 19th October 2009.

Size of grant available: up to £1000 (£30,000 is available in Dudley over the next 3 years)

Aims and outcomes of funder: Projects that work with children, young people and parents and carers. Children and young people must be involved in the planning of any project which is funded. The grant will fund both capital and revenue.

Project examples: Toys for a playgroup, trips, refurbishment projects.

Contact details: Arnie Troxler on 01384 267424 or E-mail

Dudley Songs of Praise

The 12th annual Dudley Songs of Praise takes place on 14th June at Himley Hall and Park.
there is a chance to join the massive choir as long as you can committ to the rehearsal on Monday 8th June at 7pm in Dudley Concert Hall

If you would like to take a group to participate you need to respond by 21st April. Your church should have received information about it but if not get in touch with me and I can let you know further details of who to contact.

TRAINING DAY CANCELLATION

It is with great regret that we give in to the weather conditions and cancel Inspire this Saturday. The school hosting us has been closed for the last two days and there are issues with the site which make it impossible for us to use it.

Please advise anyone you know that the day has been cancelled. Today I will be trying to call everyone who has booked for the day. If you were hoping for resources, please do vist our library of resources or get in touch with us at the Department for Children Youth and Education next week (01905732825) and we can send things out to you. We will be running the day later in the year and I will advise you all of the date as soon as I have it confirmed

Not to leave you without some inspiration, I am struck by that beautiful passage from Isaiah 55:

"As the rain and snow come down from above and return not again, but water the earth, bringing forth seed for sowing and bread to eat, so is my word that goes forth from my mouth. It will not return to me fruitless, but will accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the task I gave it." Isaiah 55.10-11

What words will you choose this week and what will be their purpose and fruit?

Good Childhood Enquiry

You may have heard a lot on the news yesterday about the Good Childhood Enquiry.

We've got two copies of the book based on the Good Childhood enquiry A Good Childhood: Searching for values in a Competitive Age in the diocesan children and youth library which people can borrow if they wish. If you fancy reading something a little shorter, you can visit the Children's Society page and have a look at the summary or the reports for each individual section (e.g. the study of values).

You can also have a look at the summary report or the report especially composed for children and young people with images and child-friendly language.

If you're thinking about the Children and Youth Included Award which the diocese is inviting churches to achieve, this report has a lot to say about children and young people being integrated into a whole community. It's well worth a read.

Pastor for Young People, St Peter's Baptist church, Worcester

http://www.stpetersbaptist.org.uk/spbc/

Description

• Do you have a committed and passionate faith and the ability to demonstrate and communicate it to young people?
• Do you have a strong desire to lead young people to Christ and to help them grow as disciples?
• Do you have leadership skills, including the ability to recruit, inspire, motivate, support and manage volunteers?

St Peter’s is a lively Baptist church in the South side of Worcester. We are a large and growing congregation with a range of thriving youth ministries.
The Pastor For Young People will lead our ministry with 11-25 year olds and work closely with the other pastors in the wider responsibilities of church leadership.

For more information about the church or application pack contact Steve Thomson
Closing Date Fri 13 Mar 2009

Minibuses

I had a query last week about hiring minibuses in Worcestershire. If you are looking for a minibus, take a look at the county site called Sharelink. You can also find guidance about getting qualified to drive the county minibuses.

Children and the Internet

I posted a while ago about Safer Internet Day on 10th February. If you want some resources to work on this topic with children or young people, have a look at Childnet International. There's a video about cyberbullying which is available free to schools. I've purchased leaflets which will be going out with the mailing next time.

YOUTH EVANGELISM FUND

This year sees Worcester diocese getting the Youth Evangelism Fund. I have just received the briefing documents for this so will be preparing application packs and publicity over the next couple of weeks.

For those of you already thinking that this might be FOR YOU, take a look at the criteria set for those applying:

Aims
The Fund affirms projects and proposals that share the Good News of Jesus Christ in ways that make sense to young people.

Projects and proposals should:
• be creative, prayerful and culturally appropriate for young people.
• be planned and developed by young people themselves.
• demonstrate the love and justice of God practically.
• have a “local” focus - towards young people in a specific community, area, or network.
• start something new (or build on what already exists in a new way).
• build on partnership and co-operation between different churches and organisations.
• form part of a wider strategy for the Church’s mission in an area or community.
• have been well-researched, and draw on examples of good practice.

Projects and proposals should enable young people to :
• encounter the Gospel at their own pace and in their own way.
• come to participate more fully in the life of the Church, either within the existing Christian community or through a fresh expression of church.

Criteria for applications
Applications should :
• be made by young people, and developed with their active contribution and involvement.
• have clear aims and objectives, and be able to explain why this project is being suggested, what it hopes to achieve, and how.
• learn from recognised good practice. (New and radical ideas for youth evangelism will be welcome, but these will need to be carefully thought through.)
• involve careful and appropriate consultation – for example with local church leaders, diocesan specialists (particularly youth and mission/evangelism officers), and relevant authorities (such as schools, colleges, local authorities).
• be aimed at the 11 to 20 age group.
• be clear how the proposal fits into the mission strategy of the Church locally.
• fit into an overall pattern of work with young people, and show how young people who make a Christian commitment will be able to nurture and develop their faith.
• be undergirded by a sound understanding of equal opportunity issues.
• reflect and incorporate good child protection procedures.

Priority will be given to :
• evangelism in areas where the Church is weakest in its outreach to young people (for
example in deeply rural or inner urban areas, or in small and struggling churches,
or among those marginalised within society).
• projects that seek to engage with distinctive youth cultures and groupings.
• specific, time-limited projects, or provision of “seed” money to help a project get started.
• projects which involve a partnership with local churches, communities or Christian organisations.

Successful applicants will:
• normally receive only part of the total cost of the venture, depending on the circumstances of the project and its needs.
• be expected to share their insights and experiences with other groups and churches, so that lessons and good practice can be shared.
• take particular care when relating to people from non-Christian faith traditions.
• ensure that evangelism is not manipulative or aggressive, and at all times respect the freedom and integrity of young people.
• encourage the development of local creative prayer support.

Blobs on the Blog

I was chatting with some teachers recently about this great resource from Pip Wilson. There was the original Blob tree and from there, he has now developed all kinds of Blobs including the latest Blob Spirituality. These are great for using with people, young and old, to help them think about their place in a community, how they feel about themselves and their relationships with others and helps groups learn about how other members of the group feel.

Children's and Families Worker, Pedmore

We are a friendly parish church within the open evangelical tradition with a vision and sense of God’s call to extend our work with children and families.

Are you an enthusiastic, committed Christian, able to take a lead in growing our mission to children and families?

In this new post you would build on our existing ministry and develop outreach programmes.

Salary between £20,000 and £24,000 dependent on qualifications and experience.

For further information and an application pack please contact

The Administrator, St Peter’s Church Centre, Pedmore Lane,
Stourbridge, West Midlands DY9 0SW

Tel No 01562 887287 (9.30-12.30 weekdays)
or email

This post is subject to Criminal Records enhanced disclosure

INTERVIEW DATE:
WEDNESDAY 4TH FEBRUARY 2009

See our website

Far Forest Centre

The Far Forest Centre has a new website.

This is still under construction but will have more information over the next few months.

We love our Youthworker

To encourage churches to enable the best possible youthwork, Youthwork the Partnership and Amaze have put together a campaign fronted by cartoons from the fantastic Dave Walker.



You can see the launch of the campaign at Spring Harvest or head on over to the Schoolswork site to see the cartoons.



I also have a hanfdul of each cartoon postcard which I will be giving away at the children and youth leaders training event INSPIRE on Saturday 7th February.

Spring Harvest 09

Spring Harvest runs three different weeks at two different venues (Skegness & Minehead). This year they are:

Week 1: Saturday 4 - Thursday 9 April 09

Week 2: Thursday 9 - Tuesday 14 April 09

Week 3: Tuesday 14 - Sunday 19 April 09

There are various ways to book for Spring Harvest

Most exciting for peopel involved in youth minsitry this year will be the launch of the new WE LOVE OUR YOUTHWORKER innitiative at each week at both venues.

Do let me know if you're taking a group and I can try and put you in touch with other groups from the diocese who are going the same week as you.