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This course will train your church respond to the challenge of disability. Whether it’s members of the youth group who have autism, older people with sight or hearing loss, people with learning disabilities or families struggling to care for a relative with dementia, every church has members affected by disability. Together we will explore what it means to become a church where everyone can belong – one that doesn’t just welcome disabled people, but includes them within church life, and encourages them to grow and participate. We will be discussing questions like: What does the Bible really say about disability? What are the barriers that prevent disabled people coming to your church? How can we develop our prayer, worship and teaching to be more inclusive? What would that look like? How can we ensure that disabled people’s gifts are recognised and encouraged?

This course will train your church respond to the challenge of disability. Whether it’s members of the youth group who have autism, older people with sight or hearing loss, people with learning disabilities or families struggling to care for a relative with dementia, every church has members affected by disability. Together we will explore what it means to become a church where everyone can belong – one that doesn’t just welcome disabled people, but includes them within church life, and encourages them to grow and participate. We will be discussing questions like: What does the Bible really say about disability? What are the barriers that prevent disabled people coming to your church? How can we develop our prayer, worship and teaching to be more inclusive? What would that look like? How can we ensure that disabled people’s gifts are recognised and encouraged?

This conference, led by the Pathways from Poverty team and administrated by Kingsgate, Great Yarmouth, is open to everyone who wants to be encouraged and equipped to be part of a church that welcomes the poor and sees lives transformed, as people are empowered to walk on pathways out of poverty.

In the UK and across continental Europe, the church is finding itself coming face to face with an ever growing tide of needs within its local community. From food and fuel poverty, to loneliness, isolation and relationship breakdown, from debt, to housing insecurity, long term unemployment and addictions. These issues are robbing people of hope for the future, damaging the mental health and wellbeing of all sections of our society, impacting young and old alike.

As we connect more and more with people living in and with these difficult circumstances, how do we keep on loving and not grow weary? How do we empower people to move forwards and not create dependencies? How do we enable people to become actively engaged in our local church communities? How do we respond with compassion yet still strive for justice?

Addressing these issues and more are the goals of this valuable and inspiring day. There will be worship, teaching, practical seminars, opportunities to meet new people, browse stands and hear about some great church-based community projects, all designed to help you to make a difference in your local community, bringing hope and transformation to the broken world around us.