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27 February 2025
Flourish lunchtime club sparks interest
The weekly lunchtime club at Horndean C of E Junior School is part of the ... read more
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25 February 2025
Flourish project launched in island school
Our ‘Flourish’ initiative has been launched at schools across our diocese, including at The Bay ... read more
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3 July 2024
Bishop Jonathan launches national ‘Flourish’ initiative
Bishop Jonathan led the national launch of the new ‘Flourish’ initiative, which aims to create ... read more
Flourish project launched in island school
AS the bell sounds for the end of the school day, children and parents pour into the hall and flock around art and craft tables.
They’ll be painting hearts, creating mirrors and re-enacting the Bible story as they explore the Parable of the Good Samaritan.
Meanwhile, volunteers have carried piles of food into the school kitchen to prepare a full-scale meal for later, including roast chicken, macaroni cheese and sticky toffee pudding. This is Messy Church at The Bay C of E School’s primary site in Sandown – just part of the ‘Flourish’ initiative there.
Our diocese is piloting Flourish, which is a new way to link church and school together to form voluntary worshipping communities meeting midweek. Of the 40 such projects across the Church of England, four are in our diocese – at The Bay C of E School’s primary and secondary sites, Bembridge C of E Primary School and Horndean C of E Junior School. Bishop Jonathan launched this national project last summer.
Four ‘Flourish’ workers were employed to lead this work in the four venues from September 2024. And it is Chloe Wells and Neil Denley who lead this work in The Bay C of E School – working collaboratively with school leaders across primary and secondary sites. As well as Messy Church, they help to lead collective worship, and offer art and craft sessions for a ‘nurture’ group.
“It is a real privilege to be part of Flourish and to be able to talk about faith,” said Chloe. “I enjoy art and craft, and it’s good to use my skills in those kind of activities. I also use storytelling with children who have special educational needs, and my experience means I can offer one-to-one therapeutic play and trauma-informed counselling. At lunchtime, I lead craft activities in a yurt in the playground, and there are queues of children outside.”
Georgia Upson, whose daughter Mia, aged 10, goes to Messy Church, said: “We’re both Christians, so it’s nice to support the school when they put on these things. We also like craft, so it’s great to have the chance to do it together.”
And Rosmy Joseph, whose daughter Ivania Rose, aged 5, also attends, said: “She knows the Bible stories and I want her to understand them, as the Bible gives her morals. It is also good not having to cook a meal!”
Chloe and Neil’s work on the secondary site began by creating an early-morning prayer group. In January, they launched a daily Breakfast Club offering cereal and toast – with bacon and sausage rolls on a Friday. More than 100 students come to the canteen each day, giving them a chance to build relationships and eat breakfast.
They’ve now started a voluntary Christian Union at lunchtime each week, where students and staff can read the Bible, pray and worship together. The group is already planning a school performance of the Mark Drama, which re-enacts the entire gospel.
Other initiatives planned include using a worship band to enhance learning about music, using memory techniques to enhance academic achievement, and inspiring students to embrace environmental initiatives to care for God’s creation. They’ve already worked alongside Christ Church to provide a Christmas Day meal for local families, as the start of their involvement in improving community life at an important time of year.
“We want to continue to empower the voice of students, so we’ve been using surveys and questionnaires to find out what else they would like,” said Neil. “The Breakfast Club was an obvious thing to provide, as so many students skip breakfast at home. Without eating properly, it’s hard to concentrate in lessons.
“As far as the Christian Union is concerned, we would like the students themselves to lead it. They should drive what they study and what they pray for. They would like to run a Youth Alpha Course in the near future.
“We also hope to reach students’ parents by running a Young Disciples group at Christ Church on a Monday night.”
The other island school with a Flourish worker is Bembridge C of E Primary, where Heather Grey-Newton has now taken over from Sally Holt.
Among the core principles for Flourish projects is the idea that young people’s voices are always at the centre of decisions made, and that all activities are agreed strategically between the school and the church. The pilot projects will last for two years before lessons are shared with others in the Church of England.