An allocation of £3.2 million has been awarded to the Diocese of Guilford to support a new project seeking to encourage young people to explore the Christian faith.
The “Youth Catalyst” program will train four existing youth ministers and deploy apprentice youth pastors in three church of England secondary schools and one state secondary school.
Also, a team will be recruited to oversee the youth worship events held all around the diocese.
Programme Lead, Alastair Etheridge, was quoted by Premier Christian News as saying “The number of young people in our churches do not reflect the communities they are in”
“We talked with young people, churches, and other organizations working with young people. We found that the way many young people found safe spaces to gather and explore faith in our churches in the past doesn’t work for this generation. A different approach was needed…
“Youth Catalyst puts the needs and wants of young people at the center. We’ll be building a team, working with and in schools, putting on big events for everyone, and creating smaller groups for young people who want to explore faith.”
The program is one of the five initiatives around the country that the Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board has funded.
The Vicar at St Paul’s Church Addlestone Rev Ben Beecroft, has expressed excitement over the new project.
“I’m really excited about how this project will help to create a church that welcomes and empowers young people today,” Beecroft said
“We want them to feel confident and courageous in sharing their faith with their school communities, their families, and friends. We’re inspired by a Bible verse (Philippians 1:14) that says we should dare to live and tell others about Jesus when filled with God’s love and power. That’s our dream and goal!” he added.