Vision and Strategy Stories

Read a selection of inspiring stories from churches across the country.
  1. Ady Hodgkinson at his baptism

    ‘I started to sob and sob’ - a life-changing encounter in a cafe

    01/04/2022

    After years of alcohol and drug dependency, earlier this year, Ady Hodgkinson was baptised – marking an incredible transformation in his life which all started with an encounter at a Christian café. 

    2 min read
  2. A choir in red robes stands smiling in the church of St Paul Without Walls in Canterbury

    Parish Evensong congregation grows from just one to more than 70 – with the help of church choir and a home cooked meal

    24/01/2022

    A parish in the heart of Canterbury has celebrated the success of an Evensong service whose congregation has  jumped from just one person to more than 70. 

    2 min read
  3. LynnBoyle2

    ‘I came away feeling grounded’ – the music festival chaplain giving hope to hundreds

    20/12/2021

    Revd Lynn Boyle leads services and works behind the bar as Chaplain of the Country Music Festivals of Whitebottom Farm in Stockport.

    4 min read
  4. Henry is shown in his clerical robes smiling

    ‘I was fighting it’ an AI scientist’s 12-year journey to ordination

    18/11/2021

    Henry Akingbemisilu was ordained as a Deacon earlier this year. He serves as a Self-Supporting Minister in Thamesmead, London, in the Diocese of Southwark – alongside working in Data Science.

    2 min read
  5. Reduced quality picture of children engaging with older people at Synod

    Young leaders from Church schools meet General Synod members ahead of first in-person meeting

    17/11/2021

    Young people, aged between 12 and 17, from across England led and engaged in discussions with members of the General Synod ahead of the first full in-person meeting since before the pandemic. 

    2 min read
  6. SimonWilkinsonpic

    How a podcast is helping thousands through the pandemic

    11/10/2021

    During the pandemic, nearly a quarter of a million people have used the Daily Prayer podcast – finding support in a daily cycle of prayer traditionally associated with monastic communities. 
     

    3 min read
  7. Capt Nicholas Lebey CA is shown as an ordinand outside Southwark Cathedral

    The youth groups that grew into a church

    21/09/2021

    Years after a missionary planted a church in his village in Ghana, Nicholas Lebey is now doing the same in South-East London.

    2 min read
  8. A father holds his two children as they smile to the camera while enjoying a so-called trail in a church's churchyard

    Interactive church yard ‘trails’ become unexpected summer hit

    10/08/2021

    A group of churches on Dartmoor is welcoming an increasing number of people over the summer after installing interactive prayer ‘trails’ in churchyards.

    2 min read
  9. Richard is shown in a walking jacket with mist on some country or mountain road clearly shown behind him

    ‘The words came alive’ – the play that changed Richard’s life forever

    02/07/2021

    Richard Sandland, is being ordained Deacon in Worcester Cathedral on 4 July and will serve in the parish of Bromsgrove, ten years after watching an extraordinary play – that would change his life.  

    2 min read
  10. A man is shown smiling

    ‘Initially I ran in the opposite direction’ – a 30-year journey to ordination.

    25/06/2021

    Heath Monaghan first felt God calling him to be ordained when he was 13. More than three decades later, he expects to be tearful during the ordination service.

    2 min read