Summer Holiday Clubs Across the Diocese
It’s been exciting to hear about the holiday clubs for children and families happening across our diocese over the past few weeks. These events have been filled with lots of sun, fun activities, plenty of food, and, most importantly, opportunities to learn more about the good news of Jesus!
Summer Craft Sessions at St Paul’s boundary Road
For the last three weeks, every Monday and Tuesday, St Paul’s have opened the hall to provide free craft sessions for families, welcoming children from 0–11. These sessions have created a gentle rhythm and a supportive space during what can feel like a long and isolating five week summer period, especially as most clubs and groups pause for the holidays.
Across the three weeks, they’ve welcomed over 127 children, meeting new families every single session. The hall has been full of colour, conversation, and connection — friendships forming between parents, children exploring activities together, and families finding a place of belonging.
Parents have expressed deep appreciation, not only for the activities but for the emotional support offered:
“Thank you for providing amazing selections of activities but also thank you for a listening ear in a difficult time.”
“We look forward to Mondays and Tuesdays — it gives us routine, and then we can go to the café for lunch.”
Wild Crafts at All Saints, Barnby in the Willows
Barnby’s Wild Crafts event was held last Wednesday (12th August) in All Saints’ peaceful churchyard setting, beneath the shade of the trees down near the River Witham. Despite the hot temperatures of the day and the warmth of the sunshine, the setting really did provide a welcome retreat from the heat – and a relaxing and enjoyable atmosphere for everyone who attended.
There was plenty of fun to be had for all ages, with opportunities to get creative and enjoy the outdoors. Homemade cakes and refreshing drinks were also available, adding to the friendly community feel of the day. It was a lovely, relaxed event enjoyed by families and visitors of all ages, with plenty of smiles, creativity and good company.
Kingdom Builders at Holy Trinity Lenton
Holy Trinity Church in Lenton had an awesome time at their holiday club – Kingdom Builders – last week. They welcomed nineteen children across three action-packed mornings of team games, watching dramas, exploring bible stories, doing crafts, working out riddles, sharing snacks and lots of epic songs and dancing. They discovered that the Kingdom of Heaven begins inside the hearts of those who love Jesus – and that everybody, even the smallest children, are invited to be Kingdom Builders.
Rooted at St Stephen Sneinton
There was so much fun and joy in the Sneinton Holiday Club learning more about being Rooted in Christ.
Priest in Charge, Rev Lynda Blakeley, shared:
“God has blessed us with a fantastic group of volunteers from many churches as we learnt in creative ways about being rooted in God’s love, His word and rooted to grow and share We also had a very fun day out with many families at Rutland water – a great day in the sun!”
To read a collection of our previous summer stories, click here.