The world is a different place now than it was three years ago. Church is not the automatic place to come to for community and relationship building. No longer does the mantra of “if we open the doors, they will come” hold true. There are many children and families who have connections with our congregations and come to organisations during the week but are not part of our Sunday morning church family.

There is a growing realisation that new approaches are needed to reach and develop relationships with those on the fringe of church life. There are many challenges involved in imagining and implementing this creativity in the midst of busy church calendars, but these days are a new beginning and give us the opportunity to try new things.

In this podcast episode, Ruth Bromley (PCI’s Children’s Development Officer) is joined by Rev Corrina Heron (Dunmurry Presbyterian), Rev Stuart Morrow (Portstewart Presbyterian), and Rev Jimmy Warburton (High Street Holywood Presbyterian) to talk about how their congregations have tried different approaches to connect with children and families in their communities and encourage them to be a part of the church family on a Sunday.