Youth Assembly
Youth Assembly is run annually in January and is open to all those from Year 10/S4 up to their 26th birthday. It includes having a say in how URC Youth and the URC in general consider major matters on a national scale, all set around a fun and exciting weekend full of activities, discussions, worship, games, chat, entertainment and more.
JPIT Conference - Renewal and Rebellion
This conference by the Joint Public Issues Team was planned for March 2020.
LICC Conference
The URC Children's and Youth Work committee sponsored a conference at the London Institute of Contemporary Christianity. This was a one-off event.
Youth Eco Day
Run by North Western Sydod, the youth eco day was run in February 2020.
National Youth Assembly of the Church of Scotland
In August one or two young people are invited to attend the National Youth Assembly of the Church of Scotland as representatives of the URC.
Trip to Berlin to mark the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall
This was an opportunity to join a five day trip to Berlin where representatives were invited to participate in celebrations marking the anniversary of fall of the Berlin Wall in November 2019 together with local churches.
Educational trip to Israel and Palestine September 2019
This was an opportunity for a young person between the age of 18 and 25 to join synod representatives (who could also be under 25s) on an educational visit to Israel and Palestine from 18 to 28 September 2019.
Starpoint Youth Festival in Hungary: July 2019
This opportunity was for two young particpants aged 18 to 34 from the URC to the Starpoint Youth Festival which takes place 21-28 July, 2019 (including travel days) in Debrecen. The organisers encourage you to look at news, reports, and even short videos in English from past festivals: http://csillag.reformatus.hu/#starpoint
Youth Assembly Taster Day
The Youth Assembly Taster Day was for those who weretoo young for Youth Assembly or have always wondered what it is all about but were unsure whether it was for them. It involved a team building activity, prayers, learning a bit about URC Youth and Youth Assembly, and then joining the Assembly for worship, one keynote talk and workshops. The decision was made not to repeat this for Youth Assembly 2020 or 2021.
Making Space
A URC conference for local church children’s, families and youth workers
For Those appointed (employed or core volunteer leading this ministry) by local churches working with children and young people within local churches, ecumenical projects, local charities or the wider community.
Aim To gather together children’s and youth workers for networking, training, listening, inspiration and growing community.
The day included:
Making Space Day Conference Keynote Space for children to be children and young people to be young people
My Space Hearing from a variety of local church contexts
Your Space Reflecting on your context and learning in a variety of ways
Our Space Sharing, responding, moving forwards
There was also an optional networking meal on Friday 5 October at 8pm at the Rupert Brooke Wetherspoons pub.
Greenbelt Youth Ambassadors
2018 was the first time that the URC took a team of eight youth ambassadors aged 16-25 to Greenbelt to represent the URC whilst working in the takeaway tent, leading Cake and Debate, creating videos and social media reports and generally getting a taste of the festival. The role was repeated for 2019 when the theme of the festival is Wit and Wisdom but will probably be discontinued after that, although young people will still be encouraged to go to Greenbelt and participate, or to join one of their volunteer programmes. Youth Ambassadors now have the role of spreading the message about their experiences across the synods. You can read more about the experiences of our Youth Ambassadors on our Good News page.
This year's internship applications are now closed. Watch this space if you would be interested in applying for a WCRC internship in 2020. More information can be found on the WCRC website internship page
Peace and Justice Forum
The Peace and Justice Forum is an initiative of the four churches to equip, engage and empower young people to be agents of change in their churches and communitie under the umbrella of the Joint Public Issues Team (JPIT)
Abassadors for the forum are 18-25 and have a passion for social justice. This was a two-year role, which including working on brand new resources, receiving training on how to be an effective campaigner and getting the opportunity to engage with decision makers and to be heard.
Crossfire Youth Camp
Crossfire is an exciting annual event each May for young people in the URC aged 12+ to explore more about faith in Jesus Christ through small groups, teaching, worship and a whole range of fun activities. Crossfire PLUS then takes place in November, providing a residential event for those aged 16+ who wish to take the topic a bit deeper.
The Big Speak Out was a residential weekend for young people aged 11 to 18 connected to the URC.
In 2019 this residential weekend was held in Repton School and photos and a review of the weekend can be found here as well as on our facebook page (see link in our pages menu). This event did not run during 2020 due to the pandemic but will hopefully run again in July 2021, this time in Woodhouse Grove School in Yorkshire.
Representative to Quakers Junior Yearly Meeting
JYM is a residential event which happens alongside the all age Quaker event Yearly Meeting at Friends House, London in May.
What you need to know:
- The cost of attending is paid for by the URC. This includes fully catered accommodation, return travel to and from Friends House during the event, travel to Friends House on Monday and a packed lunch at Friends House on Monday.
- As well as being a “Peace Church”, Quaker belief’s and traditions are often distinctive from other denominations, we include information about this in the leaflet About Quakers, it’s helpful if they can read this so that this differences are less of a culture shock.
Further information about Quakers can be found at http://www.yqspace.org.uk/about-quakers
WCC stewards programme for Central Committee
The World Council of Churches Central Committee meets once every two years, their last meeting being in Geneval in June 2018.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) Stewards Programme aims to bring together a dynamic and diverse group of 20 young people aged 18-25 from all over the world to act as stewards for the meeting. It is an opportunity for anyone in that age group who is interested in learning more about the worldwide Church and working with fellow young people from across the globe. English is the working language of the programme, and patience, ability to work with people from other countries and cultures, as well as a willingness to work together as a team, are key skills for participants to demonstrate.
Applications require letters of recommendation from the URC and an ecumenical body.
Internships
In the past year internships have been advertised with the Joint Public Issues Team (JPIT) , URC General Assembly (next meeting in 2020), the World Council of Reformed Churches and the Methodist One Intern programme
CWM Training in Mission
The Council for World Mission (CWM) has been investing in equipping the young people for the ministry and mission of its member churches since 1981, especially through its flagship ‘Training in Mission’ (TIM) Programme.
Every year, 10-12 participants, aged 18-30, from member churches including the United Reformed Church, are brought together for about seven months of intensive mission training.
Employing an action-reflection model of learning, over 350 young people have so far been changed for life by this magnificent programme, developing a new practical and radical understanding of what witnessing to Christ means. CWM is known for its commitment to mutual encounter, in which peoples and cultures form across the planet meet together to learn from one another. Other events held by CWM and promoted by the URC have included programmes on Mental Health, Migration, Young Women Enabling Transformation and others. Rreports from these events can be read above.
