Christmas 2016 Newsletter Contact details: Address: St Peter’s Church, Tewkesbury Road, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL51 9AHTel: 01242 700700E-mail: hello@therock.uk.comWeb: www.therock.uk.comCharity number: 1126131

LIFE ..

EXCITING NEW PRIMARY PROJECTS

The Diocese of Gloucester has been in the process of forming and refining its vision for the next five years. It has been a privilege to be part of this process of conversation. On Saturday 25 November the new vision was formally launched with a party at Francis Close Hall. The focus of the vision is LIFE (Leadership, Imagination, Faith and Engagement), ‘I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.’ (John 10:10). Bishop Rachel connected the vision with the idea of sharing cake – being supportive community especially in times of joy and times of sorrow. The Rock enjoyed running circus skills activities, an inner tube changing challenge and a photo competition. It was fantastic to share in such a vibrant and fun event. We were so appreciative of the support of our team of young volunteers, thank you!

The vision of LIFE echoes with so much of The Rock’s work. We always strive to engage- especially with those who may be disengaged; Christian values such as hope, purpose and resilience are both our message and identity; with young people we are constantly re-imagining innovative youth projects and we are continuously inspiring young people, young adults and those of all ages to grow in their roles as leaders within their communities. We look forward to seeing the vision being worked out in our communities in amazing ways over the next years.Andy

Find out more at: http://gloucester.anglican.org/about/vision

To all our Supporters:

Happy Christmas and a bright New Year from All at The Rock

Over the last 5 years, The Rock has been providing engaging primary projects to support the transition to secondary school. We are excited to be able to offer an even wider range of projects including single activity sessions with our archery range, a three week challenge programme and creative prayer afternoons. We are always happy to tailor projects to suit individual schools.

COMMUNITY NEWSOn Saturday 3rd December The Rock held a Christmas Craft coffee morning. Families from our community came and made Christmas spiced biscuits, Christingle candles and reindeer lollies. It was a relaxed fun morning, sharing time together and starting the festive season. Thanks again to Marisa from Tesco who supported this event.Ali

DETACHED YOUTH WORK

EVENTS COMING UP:

Mon December 19th 12pm - 1.30pmChristmas Lunch Community Café

INDIVIDUAL SUPPORT

FAITH : @ THE ROCK

NEW BIKECOURSE

Chris and Ali have been fortunate to work in both All Saints’ Academy and most recently this term, in Pittville School during lunchtimes. This is a great opportunity to make young people more aware of activities open to them and to continue to build positive links.

We are also using this time to chat to young people about issues that matter to them about where they live. This information will be fed into our Youth Forum who are researching the needs of young people in the St Peter’s & the Moors area. Thanks to SPTM Big Local for supporting this work.Chris

The beginning of November saw the launch of our Community Sports initiative. This has grown out of our Activate Holiday Project and young people’s feedback. Community Sports is designed to be a specific activity session each week in which, over the weeks through coaching and practice, young people can build up their confidence and skills in a specific sport or activity.

Six weeks of basketball coaching has seen a positive group of young people develop in enthusiasm, and progress in their skills within the sport. Going forward we are excited to offer archery as the next block of activity focus. Chris

At the Rock along with our group support we also support young people individually. This includes: supporting them to achieve in their educational setting; working better with others and motivating and supporting them in future paths.

One young person we have been supporting for a number of years has made really positive progress recently. We have been able to support him in writing his CV and finding part time work alongside exploring career choices. It really is amazing to journey with young people as they grow and develop into their full potential. Our individual work is a significant part of what we offer, as it enables mentoring of young people, and space for them to explore and develop who they are, the values they hold, and see what they can achieve.Chris

The Rock’s new vocational Bike Course is being piloted with its first three young people, to teach them the skills to be able to repair bicycles. The course grows skills needed to get a job in the future and help them get a feel for what working life could be like in a trade. So far it has been received well by the young people, who are excited to be delving into a new area of skill and knowledge alongside the great rewards of being your own mechanic!Jay

Our monthly Saturday Night faith group has taken off over the last three months. Young people have enjoyed space to connect through sport, cooking, creative arts, worship, discussion and space to reflect.

It has been great to see young people from The Rock, local churches, and the local area appreciate this group for the space it gives to be themselves and explore who they are and how God connects to our lives.Sharon