Sunday Worship for Families with Children

Family at the cribWe love welcoming children to our church, celebrating the energy and spontaneity that they bring to our worship. We recognise that bringing children along to church for the first time can feel quite daunting, but want to do all we can to ensure that you, and your little ones, feel relaxed within our church family.

A Sunday Club for under 10s, and the Core for 10+ runs every Sunday in term-time, during the 10am service, and is a chance for children and young people to explore faith in a relaxed and fun environment.

On the 2nd Sunday of each month at 10am, we have an All Age service of Holy Communion, where we all stay together in church, and the children help with various parts of the service. This is an opportunity for the children to grow familiar with the liturgies and prayers that support our Anglican worship, and for the adults to grow familiar with some of the creative forms of worship and prayer that the children especially enjoy!

Our most informal service, specifically for younger children, is called Kairos, and takes place on the 1st & 3rd Sundays of each month at 3.30pm. We enjoy action songs, games, and crafts, and then finish by offering a children’s tea together in the Leslie Room, and the chance for parents to enjoy refreshments and chat.

10:00 am – All Age Communion
On the 2nd Sunday of every month and during school holidays, the whole church family is encouraged to worship together at 10:00am with an All Age Communion Service.  Whilst retaining all the principle components of the communion service, the liturgy is simpler and shorter than normal, the hymns more modern and the sermon generally designed to appeal to a younger audience.  This service is typically 60 minutes long.

10:00am – Sunday Club
On Sundays when there is no All Age Communion, there is fun and age-appropriate Christian teaching for children at our Sunday Club, which meets in the Leslie room at the back of the church.  The children start off in the service with their families, and then go to their groups during the 1st hymn, returning in time to receive Communion.

Happy bags and a crèche are available in church for children under Sunday Club age and those preferring to stay with their parents. “Happy Bags” are large, cloth drawstring bags with a small selection of toys, books and drawing materials suitable for younger children.  They are stored in a large wicker basket close to the north door (ie the main door) and can be collected as you come into the church.  Please could you return the bag to the wicker basket ready for the next child to use.

“Fidget Bags” are to help older children who have concentration issues.  The bags are kept in the crèche cupboard and have small items to fidget with and colour filters to put over books & service sheets.  Please return them after use.  Please talk to the Families and Children’s Worker, Linda Baker, so we can try and support every child with additional needs.