For the past 17 years at Slough Baptist Church we have put on a presentation at Christmas (Christmas Unwrapped) and Easter (Easter Cracked) for year 6 pupils from local schools. The aim is to give a positive and warm impression of being in a church and to communicate the message of these two key festivals. In that time we have seen over 10,000 pupils come to these events to explore the true meaning of Christmas and Easter.
The idea is that they come to the church and spend 90 minutes finding out the real meaning of Christmas and Easter in a fun, enjoyable and informative way. We have been blown away by how well it has gone and the positive feedback from staff and children. As a secondary schools worker I'm often having chats with teenagers who can remember their visit to the church, and the positive impression it made on them.
We set aside one week for each event, but have seen interest grow dramatically. At Christmas there were over 12,000 pupils in around 30 locations, from over 200 schools hearing the message of Christmas. These presentations were happening in Altrincham, Bath, Brentwood, Bristol, Broadstairs, Cippenham, Colliers Wood, Edinburgh, Fleet, Glasgow, Gravesend, Hamilton & Blantyre, Heathrow, High Wycombe, Hockley, Keighley, Langley, Liverpool, Maidenhead, Milton Keynes, Newbury, Reading, Spalding, Swindon, Thanet, Wales, Welwyn Garden City and Woodley.
"Every aspect of the presentation was well thought out and executed beautifully. The children’s attention was focused from start to finish. I would love to see every school to have the opportunity to participate in such a presentation"…. Elizabeth Pearce (Retired RE Teacher)
If you would like to come and visit one of these then 'Easter Cracked' is scheduled for 12-16 March. Sessions run from 10.00-11.30am or 1.00-2.30pm. Please e-mail or call Wayne Dixon (01753 523058) wayned@scriptureunion.org.uk to suggest a time. If you live further away then again get in touch and we can connect you with a venue closer to where you live.
Our latest method of spreading these presentations is to allow people to download all the files that we use. There is a small cost of £5 (payable via paypal), but that will give you access to all the material to download in open format, so you can make your own changes. You can download the material as many times as you like, and can get newer versions as they are made available. See our about page to view the files available, or the FAQ page for many of the frequency asked questions.