Pre-pandemic, our wonderful staff and volunteers were supporting fifty-two schools, and engaging with over 10,000 individuals annually. Severely hampered by the devastating and unforeseen effects of the pandemic, funding is now needed so that we can enhance our education offering and grow our ministry to young people and their families.
After an extensive consultation involving local schools, youth workers, parish priests, Diocesan staff, the Board of Education, and other Cathedrals, as well as our own staff, volunteers, and congregation, several needs were identified. The overwhelming feedback was that our Cathedral is well placed to help to bridge the gap in opportunities outside of the classroom for schools and families that have been decimated in recent years. We want to be able to offer enriching experiences that facilitate social development, build confidence and helps develop relationships with peers.
Our plan is to recruit two new members of staff, supported by our brilliant team of education volunteers. Working together, in partnership with local schools, they will design programmes that meet the needs of young people across the community with a particular focus on children and young people from areas of greater deprivation. They will also encourage families to explore, learn, and become a part of the Cathedral community. Schools will be offered tangible experiences that cannot be provided in the classroom. Our ministry to children and young people will not be a schools-based sector ministry, but a holistic ministry that runs through all that we do.
We hope that Chichester Cathedral can lead the Diocese in providing quality Religious Education provision. These curriculum-based programs will nurture critical thinking, amplifying the voices of children and young people in worship and visiting experiences, and cultivating a profound sense of belonging within the Cathedral for this cohort. The Cathedral hopes to support children and young people with their wellbeing and encourage them to see that the Cathedral is very much a place for them, whether that be for worship, learning or simply quiet reflection.
This is an ongoing project for Chichester Cathedral Trust and so far, the Trust has managed to raise almost half of the projected costs, with help from the Cathedral Friends and Benefact Trust. We pray that other funders will join the Trust on this vital Christian mission.
All involved with this fundraising project are keen to bring the excitement, vibrancy and energy of children and young people back to this living building. The Cathedral will be able to offer potentially transformative experiences for the community’s youth. This generation has faced unprecedented challenges. It is therefore essential we create opportunities for our youth to lift their gaze from their devices and immerse themselves in the wonders of this sacred space. Chapter believes that children and young people are not the church of tomorrow, they are the church of today. By funding these two roles, generous donors are helping to make this belief a lived reality.
The responses of people of all ages from the youngest, through to the teens and adults, demonstrate that they have been greatly moved by the purposeful and focused time they have spent in this sacred space. The quality and thoughtfulness of the questions, the moving responses, to the things seen and experienced is something I will never forget
Jenny Dennett, Head Education Volunteer
Help us to sustain the Cathedral's sacred heritage