Children's work is an important part of our ministry in the Chet Valley.
We run Noah's Ark, a weekly drop in group for babies, toddlers and their carers.
To find out about the work of Xpressions, our events aimed at families with children, see our calendar of events.
Our Children & families Worker is Alison Ball. Here is Alison's latest report on our work:
Holiday Club: Our 2008 Holiday Club, called Xpedition Force was a great success. We celebrated the events of Holy Week through the five senses culminating in the resurrection. With a team of over 20 helpers drawn from across the benefice and beyond, we were very well supported especially as many of them had helped at similar ventures in the past. We made a five minute video of the five dramas, which was shown at the final Holiday Club Service in Holy Trinity.
Noah’s Ark is growing. In response to our request for people to come and welcome our attendees and for another able-bodied person to help set out/clear up Noah’s Ark, Annie Hutton and Janet Johns came forward to help when they are available. We are very grateful to both of them for their help. We applied for a Diocesan Good News grant which was awarded to us and enabled us to purchase a set of ‘two by two’ animal cushions and a corner carpet. We are hoping to run a session about baptism in the near future and are planning a harvest celebration. Alison is hoping to establish a good quality second-hand (or new if people donate) clothes and equipment ‘store’ for people in Noah’s Ark, and maybe beyond, to access. This is already happening informally as we have recently acquired two more ‘bouncy’ chairs and some parents are lending out/giving their new-born clothes to new mums in the group.
The Xpressions team in Xpressions Café church welcomed another new helper in August: Kate Wyer. She is enthusiastically looking forward to being part of the team.
Baptisms: Our first cafe baptism, a double one, went well and we had another double one at the beginning of September. We have four further baptisms booked in after that in Loddon and Chedgrave. Sadly one family who initially requested baptism decided not to go ahead feeling that they no longer needed it. We really could do with another member on the visiting team as with an increasing number of people to visit and do follow up visits to, we are stretched at times.
At the Infant School: Alison is working with the Y2 teachers to prepare a maths day in October before half term and we may be linking with the flower ladies after their festival in September. The children will be invited to go and see the festival in any case. She continues to work with two classes delivering music, this term working with the two oldest classes. Singing assemblies are held weekly and the children are starting to learn a song for the Loddon Harvest Festival. Clergy supported assemblies, fortnightly, are carrying on as usual.
At the Junior School: Lunch club will be starting again in the third week of term. Several of the visitors who have seen Alison in the holidays have said how much they are looking forward to coming again and seeing the children. Assemblies are continuing as usual. Alison should still be running the choir though the school still has to decide a time that this will be fitted into; they sang at Saxon House just before the end of the summer term to the delight of the residents. The choir has been invited to sing at the Harvest Festival in Loddon and also to sing at the crib service on Christmas Eve. Listeners will be starting up again once Alison and two of the new teachers have met with the deputy head to discuss what the purpose of the scheme is; we hope to be supporting children in three classes as last year though we have lost two people who were on the rota. One more person wanted to begin this term, however, and Alison will ask, through the notice sheet, if anyone else wants to join in.
Saints Alive: A number of children and adults from the Benefice attended this event arranged by the Diocesan Children’s Team in the Cathedral at the beginning of July. It was fun though there seemed to be fewer people there than at previous events of this kind (that may just be my memory!).
Training: Child protection training takes place in the middle of September which about 15 of our team are attending and I still hope to put on a puppet workshop later in the autumn.
Child Protection Officer: Alison has taken over from Annie Hutton as Child Protection Office for the Benefice and asks PCCs to ensure that Alison is the named person on their policies which they should review and display somewhere on their church notice boards!
September 2008