Children & Youth

Every Tuesday in Charminster, we run T@SM (Tuesdays at St Marys), which is a morning and afternoon Cafe for our whole community. The morning sessions are in Church from 9-12am, with the play corner open and particularly popular with toddlers and under 4s. From 3-4pm in the afternoons, we relocate to Charminster Community Centre Hall, where there are activities for children of all ages, and the same delicious cakes and treats!

Children at our local First School interact with our church and their faith five days a week, through their Collective Worship in school, after school clubs run by our Children and Families worker, Tuesday@StMarys school-run café, and weekend events. Children usually start to receive their first communion in this age group, and prepare for confirmation if they feel ready to do so. We welcome children from aged 5 to start to serve in church, from occasional roles, like carrying the baby Jesus into church at the start of our Christmas celebrations, to more vocal roles, such as leading the prayers, and reading from the front.

There are three youth groups in our Parish, for children in School years 4 upward, they serve children and young people in school years 4-6, 6/7-9, and 10-13 respectively. All of our activities as a church are fully inclusive. We do not tolerate discrimination on any grounds, including gender, sexuality, race, or disability. All of our Youth Groups provide food.

• '4UP!' is designed for children preparing to leave first school, and experiencing their first two years of middle school (years 4-6). We bridge the gap during the transition, and have a mixture of Games, crafts, and open conversation. This youth group is run by the church and contains elements of faith. As with all church activities it is inclusive and aims to encourage young people to be themselves.

• Youth Group for school years 6/7-9, comes from a partnership between the church and DYCC, and takes place on Wednesday evenings in Charlton Down Village Hall. Each week there is a sporting or games activity and a chance for a topical conversation around some of the issues that Young People face. We regularly welcome guest speakers such as our local PSCO, and inclusivity advocates, to speak to young people and allow them to raise their own thoughts.

• Youth Group for school years 10-13, is new and also stems from our partnership with DYCC. This is starting up once a month, currently on Monday evenings in Charlton Down's Herrison Hall Cafe. This is a safe space for older teenagers to hang out with each other, and to experience some of the more 'grown up' activities, such as mocktail nights, silent discos, cooking classes, and much more.

Children are welcome at all of our services. Some of our services are specifically designed to enable families to deepen their faith together in new ways, and in some of our services, which are often more traditional, children are given roles in leadership and taught new skills. 

• Messy Church is a monthly service on 4th Sundays (in the afternoon), where we engage with science experiments, crafts, games, stories, songs and cooking, in order to explore one specific element of faith. It helps children and parents to make connections with God in their every day lives, rather than just at Christmas and Easter, and is a great way of starting conversations.

• Sunday School is not as traditional as it sounds, but is available for all children who come to church on a Sunday but might be too young to help out during the service, or might prefer to be doing crafts. Cathy, our Sunday School teacher, taught many of the children's parents when they were small, and brings a bag of tricks with her on Sundays to help children connect with the readings.

• Young Servers are children and young people who want to learn new skills, and enjoy helping out at the front during a service. They get to wear a white robe and learn to process with candles and the cross, to lead prayers and read the lessons, and they can also have a go at introducing parts of the service if they would like to. Young servers often help out on 4th Sundays, but they are welcome any week.

• Café Church is our all-age discussion-based service on second Sundays. This is for all ages to engage with a particular topic over coffee, in a very relaxed setting. So far this year we have discussed Climate Change, and different ways of reading the bible.

• Children's area if all else fails we have a childrens area in the North Aisle that is packed with toys and games for children joining us on a Sunday. There are plenty of dressing up costumes, too!

Every Easter and Summer, our Children and Families Worker and team of volunteers run Holilday Craft Days, cookery camps and summer activities for children aged 6+. Teenagers are welcome to come and help and gain some helpful work experience. All of our holiday activities require pre-booking.

Last year our activities included:

• 3 day cookery course, including a day at Wagamamas

• Christmas Craft days around the Benefice.

In 2024 we are running two Eastertide Craft days, in Charminster and Frampton, and our usual Summer Cookery Course. Priority places are given to those supported by Pupil Premium at school.

Our relationship with St Mary's CE VC First School is outstanding, and we frequently welcome children into church on class visits. Each class usually visits church every half term, for a themed visit around a season or activity. In 2023 and 2024, these visits have so far covered:

• Role-play Coronation exploring the symbols 

• Epiphany exploration with role-play

• Role-play Weddings and Baptisms

• Christian Life Services (baptism, communion, confirmation, marriage and funerals)

• Seasons and colours of the church's year

• A treasure hunt around the church

• Stations of the Cross

During specific seasons, we introduce year groups to different seasons in the Christian year with the 'Explore' series. This includes: Explore Harvest, Explore Advent, Explore Christmas, Explore Easter and Explore Pentecost.

Seasons give a huge amount of space for creativity in worship, and children are at the heart of most of our seasonal celebrations. We are always overjoyed to welcome children's creative suggestions and leadership. All of our seasonal services have special roles or activity to include all ages in worship, including adults and children together. 

Coming up, we have Palm Sunday, with opportunities for children to serve, lead our procession, read and pray, Easter Sunday, with opportunities for children to lead part of our service, and then escape for an Easter Egg Hunt during the sermon, and Messy Ascension in April.