A message to all Main Leaders and Assistant Leaders in Energize Plus Groups:
As we prepare to come out of lockdown, we know that the landscape of youth and children's work will look very different. There may never have been a greater need for children and young people to have safe and welcoming places where they can meet with their friends and be supported and encouraged by caring Christian leaders as they deal with life post-COVID.
We believe this is the right time to come together and think differently.
Our vision is to lay the foundations for a new movement of like-minded volunteer leadership teams across the UK, all with the same vision and passion to reach children and young people in their local communities with the love of God, all sharing similar 'distinctives' that make them recognisably part of the same Urban Saints missional community and all benefiting from an unrivalled package of support that we will provide.
The first step in this plan is to bring together Energize Plus, Affiliated, Community and School/College Groups into a new community, all simply called Urban Saints' Groups. Please watch the video below to hear Sara Taylor, our Impact Team Manager, explain the background to the changes:
Energize Plus Groups carry the DNA that can be traced back to our Crusader roots and so that is why we would love them to be at the heart of our new community, joined by the newer types of outreach group our Impact Team has planted in the past three years. All Groups still retain the flexibility to operate in a way that best suits the team and the young people, including choosing a name that they wish to use locally, and from June all will become part of the wider community of Urban Saints’ Groups. Our prayerful hope is that in the next few years this community will grow into a network of hundreds of Groups, all connected by the same passion to journey with young people from across the UK as we disciple them to live like Christ.
A member of our Impact Team will be in contact from mid-April onwards to arrange a Zoom call with the Main Leader(s) in your Group. This will give us an opportunity to chat through the contents of the email you were sent, answer any questions you may have about the process of bringing all our Groups together under the Urban Saints name in the coming months, and explain how we will be supporting you as we all prepare for face-to-face Group meetings again.
In the meantime if you have any urgent questions please contact Sara Taylor via email at staylor@urbansaints.org.