1) Vision Where are we going?

Church on the Edge

• On the Edge is part of the wider Frontier Youth Trust and Church Missionary Society project ‘Church on the Edge’ (CotE).

• CotE seeks to bring about an expression of church with young people were they can explore what it means within their culture and setting to be church.

• This is the starting point for the work of On the edge.

• Youth work and the process of youth work can be Church.

• An image for the Church can be both the city on the hill and the journey to that city (Matt. 5:14).

‣Church as both the process and the outcome.

‣ The Journey and the destination.

Taken from ‘Off The Beaten Track’ by Richard Passmore.

City on a Hill

The Vision

Taking into account the vision of CotE. As well as church being journey and destination

The vision of On the Edge is:

‘To be and grow a relevant expression of church with young people.’

2) Aims How will we get there?

Aims: Bringing it together

By bring together the aims of CotE:

‘develop a fresh approach to challenging young people’s behavior through good youth work processes with the critical intention to grow a relevant expression of church with marginalized young people.’

And

‘The project (CotE) will seek to work within a professional framework and believe good youth work is participatory, empowering, educative and promotes equality of opportunity. We seek to enhance the personal, social, emotional and spiritual development of young people that they may realise their full potential.’

Aims: Bringing it together

And integrating them with the vision of On the Edge

‘To be and grow a relevant expression of church with young people.’

This then leads us to the key aims of On the Edge:

‣ Building meaningful relationships with young people.

‣ Helping young people to become autonomous individuals.

‣ Making it possible for young people to respond to the claims of Christ.

Breaking down the aims

• Building meaningful relationships with young people.

‣ Relationship is the core of all youth work and ministry. Without relationships between young people and workers there is no youth work.

• Helping young people to become autonomous individuals.

‣ An autonomous individual is someone who has developed an ethical framework and can act on it to take control of, and be responsible for themselves and their actions.

• Making it possible for young people to respond to the claims of Christ.

‣ By making this possible we are seeking to empower young people with information so they can make their own decisions regarding Christ. By responding, they may choose to be followers of Christ.

3) Objectives How do we meet our aims?

Achieving our Aims

Vision: To be and grow a relevant expression of church with young

Aims Objectives

Build meaningful relationships with young people.• Make contact with new young people.

• Build on existing relationships with young people.

Helping young people to become autonomous individuals.

Working with young people:

• Emotionally

• Socially

• Physically

• Academically

• Politically

• Empowerment

Make it possible for young people to respond to the claims of Christ.

• Explore with young people ‘the meaning of life’.

• Enable young people to gain relevant and appropriate exposure to the Christian faith.

By recognising our aims we can then examine appropriate ways to fulfill them by developing objectives.

4) 2007/8 Annual Plan Short term view

Aim Objective Method

Build meaningful relationships with young people.

Make contact with new young people.

Networking with areas were young people have contactInvolvement in Schools.Detached/Street workBus Breakfast

Build on existing relationships with young people.

1 to 1 workChagford Friday night meetingDrewsteignton Saturday night meetingsDay TripsYouth MealsHotspot Nights

Annual Plan: Aim One

Aim Objective Method

Helping young people to become autonomous

individuals.

EmotionallyWorking with individual young people in need

SociallyYouth FestJoint group events

Physically Develop relationships with the REC

Academically

Use ICT/media were possible. Have involvement with media projects.

Make contact with schools and seek regular involvement.

Politically Speak project

Empowerment Youth Forum

Annual Plan: Aim Two

Aim Objective Method

Make it possible for young people to respond to the

claims of Christ.

Examine with young people ‘the meaning of life’.

Actively use informal education to explore ‘the meaning of life’.

Start monthly film club to explore ‘deeper’ issues.

Enable young people to gain relevant and appropriate exposure to the Christian faith.

Be aware of possibilities for ‘informal’ discipleship.

Annual Plan: Aim Three