Between the ages of 11 and 18 – the pre-teen and teenage years. No longer a child, not yet truly an adult, our young people begin to outgrow the children's provision in church and start to question. Peers become increasingly important and peer pressure may have more influence as young people begin to take ownership of their beliefs, opinions and values. Church – whether local, regional or national, can offer increasing involvement, responsibility and chance to develop leadership skills, or simply the space to grow and explore. 

From 11 to 18, you begin to be able to access more national events or events at synod level where you can get together with other young people from different churches. Keep an eye on our events and opportunities pages from time to time and see whether there is anything that captures your imagination. 

From 14 to 25 you can participate in our Youth Assembly, a gathering of URC Youth from across the country, and at 16 and above you might choose to stand as your synod's rep on the Youth Exec or at General Assembly – an opportunity to make an impact on the denomination at a national level. 

URC Youth

Young people from 11 to 25 who are associated in any way with the United Reformed Church are automatically part of URC Youth! This page is intended to tell you more about the role of young people in the URC, to link you to churches and synods where you can get involved, to encourage you to participate in Youth Assembly and to explain a bit about the way our Youth Executive works to represent young people throughout the denomination. 

“Our mission is to discover God, help each other grow in the Christian faith and, through our lives, reflect God’s love to all.”

 Youth Assembly and the Youth Exec 

Each year, the URC Youth Assembly brings together young people from across Scotland, England and Wales for fun, faith and fellowship.

Youth Assembly also explores issues and topics relevant to Church, society and life through talk, workshops, discussions and creative activity.

Youth Exec is a team of young people made up of representatives from each regional synod and a few specific roles elected at Youth Assembly.

They  represent the needs, views and interests of all URC youth, acting as the voice of young people across England, Scotland and Wales within the United Reformed Church. They also plan and run Youth Assembly.

• Find out more about URC Youth and Youth Executive
• Find out about the 2022 Youth Assembly 
• Check out the URC Youth Facebook group

Trialogue 

Trialogue is a regular broadcast aimed primarily at the 16 to 25 age group but probably interesting to people on both sides of that demographic. A host invites three people to talk around a theme, generally themes suggested by members of URC Youth or other listeners/viewers and always themes of current interest.

The discussion is linked with a Bible reading and viewers who watch the event live are able to contribute their own comments and questions in real time.

The material remains on our YouTube channel so can be accessed after the event and is also released as a podcast on all the regular podcasting platforms.

• Visit the Trialogue Facebook page  

Children and Youth Friendly Church

If you are a young person or the family of a young person aged 11-18 and you are looking for a church to get involved with, it can be very difficult to be sure which ones will be more suitable for your needs. This is one reason why we have updated our old Child Friendly Church Award to become the Children and Youth Friendly Church Scheme. 

A church which has this award has been able to demonstrate that that they are doing everything in their power to cater for the needs of parents, carers, children and young people in their context. While this is no guarantee that the church will be just perfect for teenagers, it is a good indicator that they are thinking in a more intergenerational way. Talk to the Children's and Youth Work office or your local synod representative to find out which churches near you are involved in the scheme or simply look out for the plaque on the wall! 

Pilots

Our ecumenical, non-uniformed organisation which is open to all children and young people from 5 to 18, has groups which cater for the 11-18 age range. Here you can meet with others and get involved in crafts, team games, activities and learning more about your faith and your world. Pilots aims to meet the needs of each community in which it function. 

Pilots also encourages children and young people to develop their leadership skills and hopefully, in time, take more and more of a role in planning and delivering the programme for their company.

Some good resources...

This is our section where we ideas and resources for 11-18 year olds, their families and youth workers, and any church volunteers who work with this age group. Not all of the ideas are new ones, but good ideas seldom age! Feel free to contact us with any more resources or recommendations. 

 Suggestions for Crafts, Activities and resources

Talk Calling is another excellent resource for use with youth groups. CPAS have produced a set of discussion starter cards to enable young people (and not so young) to begin to explore the possibilities that God might be calling them to in their lives and the blockages which might be holding them back. 

          Doodle Maps

PDF catalogue of recommended resources  

Here is a PDF of some recommended books and websites organised into several categories to help you find exactly what you need.