Working well under lockdown
As a “people facing” organisation, Engage faced many challenges, but we The past 16 months has been a tough time for many, in many ways, writes Sally Lynch, Engage Primary have embraced new ways of working so our work can continue.
In March 2020, just one week into the assembly team’s Easter Assembly run, the nation was put into lockdown due to the Covid pandemic. From that moment the team was no longer able to enter schools. All the clubs stopped. “Open the Book” assemblies were cancelled.
The Assembly Team has always been busy, either rehearsing or on the road delivering assembly presentations. Suddenly – nothing!
Our first thought was for the schools that hadn’t had a chance to see the Easter presentation, whilst being thankful that some had.
We are a local Christian charity which is passionate about taking the Christian message into schools in and around Woking. Our mission is to share God’s love with children and teenagers throughout their school life, supporting and inspiring them through faith and hope. We work collaboratively with local churches, and the community to help build and strengthen connections with our local schools.
Working with over 30 Primary and Secondary Schools, as well as Woking College, our dedicated team of schools workers, volunteers and church Youth Workers deliver a wide variety of age-appropriate and accessible activities to help bring the Bible to life, including drama-led assemblies in Primary Schools and small group mentoring and pastoral care for both pupils and staff in our Secondary Schools.
Now it’s summer again, and our fourth online assembly has gone out to the schools.
“Open the Book” has also gone online. They have also worked really hard to put on excellent dramatized Bible stories for the local schools.
We have learned the joys of Zoom meetings, of filming and the fun of seeing outtakes!
When we did live assemblies, we were restricted to the 30 schools we could conveniently get to. Now we can reach many more. And as well as being seen by all the churches in Woking and the surrounding area, we have even been seen by the Archbishop of Canterbury!
Engage has its own YouTube channel, so now we can be seen by anyone, anywhere.
I have had the joy of leading a BIG team! The number of people able to give time and energy into travelling around schools has always been small and getting smaller, but going online has enabled more people to be able to help. Filming can be done in a short time from anywhere … Devon and Southampton included!
As Engage teams in our different areas we are all longing to get back into the schools again. “It’s Your Move” is already happening live, which is great.
For us personally, to be able to get back to working with each other as a team again, rather than with a Zoom screen around our faces, will be good. And we are excited that our online presence is very much here to stay.
Prayer Prompts
Please pray for Engage’s ministry through the next academic year. Please give thanks for the work we have been able to do in the past year during the Covid pandemic. In December 2020, we shared our first ever online Christmas It’s Your Move Up and running in the summer term:
getting ready for the It’s Your Move lessons which we provide for Year 6 school children.
It’s Your Move
provides them with lots of useful advice and information before they move up to secondary school.
Get Involved!
Perhaps you could become a Trustee of Engage and help shape the future of our work.
Maybe you have a heart for taking the Christian message into secondary schools or Woking College and would like to join the Engage team in running Christian Union meetings.
There are endless possibilities –just some mentioned here! Whatever your skills and gifting and the amount of time you have available, we would love to hear as we plan for the challenges of the academic year ahead!
For further information or for a chat please contact our Schools Worker Shelley Blunden on 01483 901891 or email office@engagewoking.org.