Worship for weekends? Social action for weekdays?
Friday 4:30-5:30
How do we overcome this false dichotomy – bringing our community work and projects into the centre of being church?
This interactive workshop will explore how social action impacts discipleship and church growth, what hospitality can look like, and how to prevent a split between worship at the weekend and community work the rest of the week.
With input from CUF, the Trussell Trust and people with lived experience of financial hardship.

Our contributors:

• Bishop Rob Wickham, CEO
• Revd Adam Edwards, Deputy CEO
• Polly Taylor, Project Manager

Whose church is it anyway?
Saturday 5-6pm

We talk about inviting, including or welcoming people into church. As if we have all the answers. But what would it look like to recognise that people facing financial hardship have lots to teach us? How do we build a church where all voices are heard, and no one voice dominates? Where decisions are made by people from all sectors of the community and our culture reflects the breadth of cultures in our neighbourhoods?

We’ll explore how assumptions around class and money can exclude people and think through what it might mean to centre the voices and experiences of people at the forefront of the struggle against poverty.

With input from Sara Barron, National Estates Church Network, Deacon Kerry Scarlett, Vice President of the Methodist Conference, Sharon Keogh from KingsGate Pantry and people with lived experience of poverty.

Our contributor:

• Revd Liz Carnelley, Director of Partnerships, CUF

(It's not) Just church
Sunday 17:30-18:30
Is it enough for our churches to pull people out of the river if we are not also going upstream to see what or who is pushing them in?

We’ll think about how churches can 'speak truth to power', connect with national and local decision makers, and campaign for a society that looks more like ‘heaven on earth’; making sure we speak with and through people struggling against poverty, and not for them.

With input from Al Barrett, Bev Thomas, Church Action on Poverty, The Trussell Trust and people with lived experience.

Our contributor:

• Lily Axworthy, Chief Executive Officer, Greater Together Manchester