On Sunday, Maddie and I went to St Albans URC on Homewood Rd to deliver our bi-annual Parade Service. With the Cubs, Scouts, Guides, Brownies and Beavers that meet at the church in attendance, it’s always a great opportunity to share something about the Christian faith in a fun and engaging way.

For this service, our theme was the Fruit of the Spirit- inspired by our theme for the year, ‘keep in step with the Spirit’ (Galatians 5:25).

You may be wondering what lemons, jazz apples and pears have to do with the Fruit of the Spirit. We started the service with a challenge. Three blindfolded young people had to describe a three different fruits to their partner simply by feeling them (or a few less points if they needed to have a look at the fruits). All 9 fruits started with the same letter as the Fruit of the Spirit, as illustrated by the image below, kindly created by Maddie’s sister who is currently studying illustration at university.

We gave a biology lesson on how fruit actually grows (which is not by a branch through sheer determination willing the fruit to appear) and the importance of being connected to the source to get the nutrients and sugars needed.

We shared stories of how the Fruit of the Spirit has been grown in our lives by remaining connected to God (the source/vine) and we reflected on Morgan Freeman’s insightful comment while playing God in Evan Almighty – “If someone prays for patience, you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient?”

It was another fantastic event with lots of great comments and we look forward to returning in March for our next service.

Geoff

Last Thursday, some of the Step team headed to C3 Church in Cambridge for the Global Leadership Summit – a day very packed, but with inspiration, fresh thinking and practical ideas about leadership.

With eight incredible speakers crammed into eight hours, there was plenty to reflect on! The sessions covered a fascinating range of topics: from friendship, likeability, happiness and teaching meaning, through to leading through uncertainty and building a team that no one wants to leave.

But one of the best things about the day was being there together. Our group included Step staff, a brand-new member of the team, a volunteer, a trustee and two teachers from a local school. There is something particularly valuable about learning alongside the people you work with – sharing ideas, seizing opportunities to share your thinking and discovering new ways to grow together.

There were plenty of memorable moments and thought-provoking ideas. A few highlights have stayed with me:

- Sausage rolls and plenty of pick & mix at break times
- Stay parties, rather than leaving parties
- Seeking boredom invites the meaning of life to find you. A reminder that we don’t always need to fill every moment
- Don’t predict the future – prepare for it. In a world of uncertainty and change, leadership is about being ready to respond to whatever comes next
- Spot patterns and create even better ones.

I came away with so much to think about, discuss and put into practice. Some ideas will need time to percolate; others have already sparked conversations about how we work together and how we can continue to develop as a team.

For Step, investing in leadership isn’t simply about developing individual skills. It’s about building a healthy community where staff, volunteers and young people, are all growing and seeing hope and meaning in their lives.

I left inspired, encouraged and full of hope for the future of Step. And looking forward to discovering what happens when we put some of these ideas into practice!

Our Arguments for the Existence of God lesson starts with a simple question: are you a ‘God is Nowhere Person’ (i.e. you don’t believe that God exists), or are you a ‘God is Now Here Person’ (i.e. you do believe in God). We ask the students to write what they believe on a post it note, and one reason they have for that belief. Our first lesson of the series at Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School had a student meeting this question with one of their own: ‘How could someone be a God is Nowhere person if they chose to go to this school?’. It seemed impossible to him that someone could attend a Catholic school and not believe in God. And to be honest, this was a crucial question for me as I continued in these lessons. Are we simply talking to a whole group of students who agree with every belief and viewpoint we have? And, even more importantly, what if we are?

Of course, this first question is quite silly. Even within a group of Christians you will inevitably find vastly varying viewpoints, and scopes (or maturity) of belief. Additionally, the number of ‘God is Nowhere’ post it notes that were handed back at the end of the lesson proved that this wasn’t a class of all identically-thinking young Catholics. But even more than this, the God is Now Here post it notes that were handed back blank struck me. So many young people gave no reason for what they believed.

Reflecting on these lessons, I am reminded of the Parable of the Sower and the importance of growing deep roots. A belief shared by parents may easily be strangled by the worries of life, or dismissed by distraction and peer pressure, if this belief does not have deep roots. And how do we grow these roots? We firstly need to understand what we say we believe. And from there comes a desire to grow: to learn, investigate, defend. Our time in school is worth it if we simply start with young people reflecting on what they already believe. I hope that many young people with faith ended that lesson equipped with strong arguments to support their faith.

The biggest joy from this lesson series came in a time of sharing that emerged from a discussion on religious experience. After me worrying that the class moved through the first half of the lesson quickly and without many questions, God instead used that spare time for an extended period of personal sharing. Most classes when asked about religious experiences bring up distant relatives who have survived accidents or other miracles of healing, however in this group, one after another of the students shared about how God had comforted them after the death of a loved one. Students either shared stories of comfort shown through animals and nature, or types of premonitions that brought warning and clarity to what may have otherwise been a shock. Out of this, Chris was able to read from the Beatitudes: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted”. Young people weren’t just pointed to intellectual or scientific arguments for why God exists, instead they were reflecting on how a relationship with God is so deeply personal. And for those who shared, it was a time of catharsis, and of mourning together.
                 
This was my first full lesson series since joining Step and it reminded me of so many important things: we are in schools for young people with no faith; we are in schools for young people who do have faith; we are there to teach and inform; but we are also there to simply listen.

Maddie

It is very apt that this year our theme for the year is all about keeping in step with the Spirit, and what I want to share with you today is all about a short 25-minute walk with some year 11 students from Roundwood Park School.

Each year we take the students on a church visit to High Street Methodist Church in Harpenden. We walk them down from the school to the church, give them a quick tour of the church building and then deliver part of our Christian Worship lesson in the main worship space in the church. After this quick hour visit, we then walk them back to the school and have discussions on route about what they learnt, what they enjoyed, and any questions they might have.

This year, as we were walking two conversations stood out to me:

The first conversation was with a Christian student. The conversation allowed her to share the differences between her church and the one we visited, talk about her work experience at Alpha (including answering a follow-up conversation from a friend about what the course was all about), as well as sharing insights into her faith. This brief moment gave her permission to talk about her faith and beliefs with her peers, without it coming directly from her. As the conversation went on, I saw her getting more confident in sharing and I loved this small moment, where she was able to sow some seeds with her classmates.

The second conversation was with a boy who told me that he was from a Jewish heritage. He also shared that half of his family are Christian and half are Jewish in faith. The part of the session he enjoyed the most was getting to read through some of the Psalms, in the Bible. He continued to share that he enjoyed this part of the session because he had started to read the Bible for himself at home too, as he was wanting to discover and work out for himself what he believed. I was able to encourage him to keep reading. This was such an encouragement, to see young people choosing to read the Bible for themselves and seeing this as something enjoyable and helpful in them discovering more about God and their personal faith.

I am really expectant this year to see what God does through the small conversations with students, as we keep in step with the Spirit and follow His pace and direction.

Tuesday 15th September was a big day in the Step calendar. Chris and I were branching out from our usual St Albans and Harpenden schools and working with a new school on a new project: our Leadership Foundations Course in a Day! (Yes, I know – we need a better name, but all in good time!)

As the day began, we had three aims:

1. To invest in the 14 sixth formers joining us – not simply teaching them about leadership, but helping them feel seen, valued and encouraged to grow as leaders.
2. To see whether our six-week Leadership Foundations course could actually be condensed into one day.
3. To use our influence to make connections between John F Kennedy Catholic School and Youth Across Hemel (YAH), a charity doing similar work to Step in Hemel, with the hope that they might be able to run Leadership Foundations with the school in the future.

Well, from the title of this article, you can probably guess how it went!

1. The students:
The 14 students were an incredible bunch. They were friendly, thoughtful and willing to get stuck into everything we threw at them. Chris quickly learnt everyone's names and made a point of using them throughout the day, helping each student feel seen and valued.
They engaged brilliantly with the activities and discussions, and perhaps the best feedback we could have received was that they wanted more time with us!

2. Leadership Foundations in a day:
Could we really fit a six-week course into one day? The answer, we discovered, is yes!
It was definitely a whistle-stop tour, but Chris and I worked hard to make sure we included the essential elements of the course and that everything flowed in the right order. By the end of the day, we were confident that, with a few tweaks, we could take this format into other schools too.

3. Making connections:
Our third aim was to introduce Youth Across Hemel to Damian, Assistant Head at JFK, and see whether there might be an opportunity for them to work together in the future. It didn't take long to realise that they had plenty to talk about! Damian and the YAH team got on like a house on fire, and both parties were keen to explore what working together might look like.

So, a hat-trick it was!

Chris and I finished the day tired but deeply satisfied. We had invested in a brilliant group of young people, discovered that Leadership Foundations can work in a very different format, and helped make a new connection between JFK and YAH.

We're excited to see what the future holds for the students, Leadership Foundations, JFK and YAH!

Amy

We have just had a very exciting week at Step! We had the opportunity to interact with roughly 670 students from 2 different schools in 3 different year groups for a day! It really was a thing of beauty! The most beautiful thing about the week was being able to witness all the special moments where the pupils responded enthusiastically to the message that we were delivering. Whether that was through deep conversations in the year 10 pottery sessions, poignant questions about ethics from the year 12s or the gasp of delight that the year 7s gave after the magic trick at the end of the day. This is what the week of opportunity is all about.

We had a theme for each year group - for the Year 12s at Beaumont it was Ethics, for the Year 7s at St George’s it was Identity and Justice, and with the year 10s at Beaumont we looked at the Christian worldview. What I noticed is that for all the schools we were encouraging them to look at who they are and how they have power to impact the world for good.

Often the world looks at the younger generation in a negative way but I think if they were able to hear and act on the message from these Step Days they could be the most amazing generation yet. Knowing who they are in Christ and knowing that they have been created lovingly for a purpose could make them unstoppable. What I love about working for Step is that we get to tell these young people a different story about themselves, about life and about what’s possible. Perhaps a story that they haven’t heard before and to have a whole week full of these opportunities was a privilege and a joy.

All of this would not be possible without our amazing team of volunteers and staff. We needed about 62 of us in total to run these 5 days which is immense! Some of our volunteers served on multiple days. So, thank you to all of you who poured your time, effort and prayers into these days to make the week such a success. So many seeds were sown and I am sure that they will bear fruit.

I’m going to leave you with a quote that we were given by St George’s School to help us prepare for our Step Days. It was written by the 2nd head teacher at St George’s and is still the cornerstone of their schools mission. I thought it was very interesting and summed up our vision for the days very well:

“A school does not exist to send out men and women solely to play a part in life whereby they achieve a competent and honourable life of useful work, but it exists to send out for posterity and for their own generation, men and women who, by their character shall leave the society in which they live, the better for their presence and hence the world much nearer the Kingdom”.

If you’ve been around Step for a while, you will know that one of our flagship lessons has been the Fairtrade game, where groups of students compete as trading countries to create and sell trainers and finish with the highest possible bank balance.

The game simulates world stock markets and replicates many of the inequalities experienced by developing countries, leading to a reflective discussion about the problems and a few ideas about what we can do about them, particularly reflecting on what motivates a Christian to become involved.

The game is resource heavy and usually requires 3 team members to run, due to the relentless role needed to account for the trainers produced by the 6 different countries. If you have ever been a banker for this lesson, the amount of mental arithmetic could well have caused you a pounding headache by the end!

Not just during, but also for 5 – 10 minutes after the students have finished producing, the bankers are still frantically counting trainers and adding up totals in order to be able to announce the final scores before the end of the lesson. Often both bankers have valuable ideas to contribute to the discussion, but they are so tied up finishing their additions that they don’t get to say very much.

Having taken on the role of banker a few weeks ago, I decided enough was enough, volunteer time is precious, and even more precious are their attention to interact with students and contribute to formative class discussions at the end.

I have written a new Excel spreadsheet which follows a similar style to the original bankers sheets. I hope to trial and roll this out soon for future Fairtrade bankers. It will enable quantities of trainers and their current price to be quickly entered and uses formulas to give instant totals without major hassle. It will also mean that the moment the game stops, the bankers can also take a breather. The scores will be instantly displayed. If you’ve ever had the experience of banking and plan to do this again – it’s time to get excited!

Please pray for us with upcoming Fairtrade workshops during our Step Days with St George’s and Beaumont, that God’s heart for people trapped in poverty cycles will be conveyed through these sessions.

Jeremy Bottrill

As we step into this week, we are meeting the year 7s at Sandringham for the third time, in three consecutive weeks!

They first got to experience our 'Who is Jesus' lesson, being given the gift of a Good News For Everyone Youth Testament.

We then had our first ever Culture Day at the school, during their Enrichment Week.

And finally, we get to talk to them this week about Parables, offering them an 'Explore the Bible' to help them start reading the Bible should they wish.

But, I would love to zoom into the Culture Day. The young people are able to celebrate cultures around the world and in the afternoon have the opportunity to reflect on the Christian view that they are created by God and how we can play a part in looking out for others.

One of my favourite parts was a boy coming up to me and saying:
'I have read Matthew, guess what? Jesus dies!' and then asking me how can get access to a 'Full Bible'.

But instead of me telling you about how great it was, here are some quotes from the students about what they enjoyed and learned from the day:

My favourite part of the day was...
'Exploring cultures and countries'
'Trying food that I hadn't tried before'
'I liked creating the hybrid animal'
'Meeting people from different countries'

Is there anything you learnt or that made you think differently today?
'Don’t judge a culture by its living conditions'
'What refugees have to go through to get to different countries'
'I didn’t realise refugees had to make so many difficult decisions'
'It made me feel grateful for the stuff I have'
'Be grateful and proud of my faith and culture'
'That the world is very diverse'
'I am unique'

Mary

It’s not a lesson I often run but when you get a class like the one I had the other week it reminds me of why I like it so much.

On a grey Tuesday morning at Townsend I head into see a small class of 15 and introduce the topic we’re looking at and run the usual starter of strange laws that may or may not exist. Classes always find this a laugh but even from this point I started to have some good questions that wouldn’t normally get asked.

The next activity invites the students to imagine they’re a judge in a court room and they get to decide the sentence of the guilty defendant. They can choose anything they like (other than capital or corporal punishment). At this point especially when we started the discussions of what punishment they’d chosen we had some of the best questions!

I was very glad I’ve watched so many documentaries on prisons systems, parole and sentencing convicts. I was also very glad to have had a number of conversations with one of our wonderful volunteers Marion who also works with the magistrates and has previously come along to this lesson to advice on the realities of the justice system.

I had questions about life sentences, what parole is and means for convicts on parole, can you have multiple life sentences and so many more!!!

We then look at why we punish and what it means to be a victim. We explore restorative justice and how it can help both victim and perpetrator. Before looking at the story of Zacchaeus and three points the Bible teaches Christians. Everyone's done wrong (Romans 3:23), Everyone has value (John 3:16) and Everyone is responsible (Luke 19:8).

The lesson always finishes with the poignant video testimony of Shane Taylor who shares his experience of attending an Alpha course whilst in prison for attempted murder and then the stabbing of a prison officer. Whilst prison was the safest place for Shane ultimately it was only God who was able to fully turn his life around. There is always a moment of hush at the end of his testimony as the students take in everything he said.

I look forward to the next time I see these students to see what questions they come up with next.

Helena :)

(Image - David von Diemar - Unsplash)

A few months ago, a student sat down opposite me and quietly admitted that the things she was saying to herself were harsh and critical. Over the following weeks, I watched her begin to challenge that voice and learn to encourage herself instead.

Moments like these are why mentoring has become one of the most precious parts of my role at Step, and I have come to see it as both powerful and a real privilege.

All my opportunities to mentor have come about organically. They are students I have met through my lunchtime club, or through the Leadership Foundations course. Because of this, there is usually already a natural rapport between us.

Each student I meet is unique, with their own specific set of issues they would like to explore. Because of this, I have had to lean into God and trust Him to give me wisdom, as there have been times when I have felt a bit out of my depth!

Some students I have journeyed with have needed confidence-building skills, others have been walking through a season of grief or change. Some simply needed a listening ear to process the challenges of being in a busy and overwhelming school environment.

Listening and giving them space to talk things through is powerful and often helps them see things more clearly for themselves.

And whilst the issues they come to me with are different, the overarching response I choose to offer is a “safe space,” where they are completely accepted.

I usually start my sessions with a game or some icebreaker questions to get things off to a positive start. For some students I set goals and targets, for others I work through resources like our 'Tough Stuff' or 'iMatter' journals. Sessions are planned and focused but allow room for a conversation to go in a different direction or to just have a laugh together.

If a student shares my faith, I will often close our time together in prayer, committing their issues to God and praying a blessing over them. I also pray for them regularly in my own prayer time, and it has been encouraging seeing God answer some of the requests I have made.

Overall, it is a huge privilege to walk alongside a young person and enter into a deeper, more meaningful relationship with them than just meeting them in a classroom for a lesson. I have seen real fruit from some of the students I have worked with. As well as the student who learnt to quieten her inner critic, another learnt the value of apologising to friends and parents when mistakes have been made, and another has begun the journey of healing after a bereavement, simply through talking and sharing memories of their loved one.

Every mentoring journey is different, but each one reminds me of the importance of being present, listening well, and helping young people recognise their value. It is a privilege I never take for granted, and I am grateful that, through Step's work, these opportunities continue to make a difference in young people's lives.

Amy

Our Christian Worship lesson really is so full of goodness! I had the opportunity recently to go into Beaumont School and teach two year 10 classes (with the help of our wonderful work experience student) about what worship is and show them examples of different styles of Christian worship.

For me, one of the best parts of this lesson is seeing the surprise on their faces when you  show them an example of young people passionately worshipping Jesus at a summer festival and then ask 'is this what worship looks like to you?' You can tell that for some of the students this is not what they expect worship to look like. If you’ve been a Christian for a while you might be aware that there are lots of different ways to worship but for someone who doesn’t go to church, this lesson can be an eye-opening experience.

We go through the definition of worship but I think the next thing that catches the eye of the students is the photo of English football supporters cheering and a photo of Taylor Swift fans at her concert with the quote below that says:

“There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship” (David Foster)

I really like to let that one sink in because it gives them a chance to reflect on what it is that they are worshipping and whether they think this idea is true. Does everybody really worship something even if they don’t have a faith?

We also discuss Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman about how the worship that God wants is worship done in Spirit and in truth and how Christians believe that worship is one of our main purposes in life - to glorify God and to enjoy Him. These are great conversations, but the fun part is actually getting involved and trying out some of the different ways of worshipping.

In his book ‘Sacred Paths’ Gary Thomas speaks about 9 different pathways that help us to connect to God. We base the rest of the lesson on experiencing 7 or 8 of these different pathways (Traditional, Enthusiast, Activist, Contemplative, Naturalist, Intellectual, Caregiver and Ascetic). My classes enjoyed learning that Christians connect with God in different ways because we are all unique. I think overall their favourite pathway was Enthusiast which involved them listening to a Christian song about joy whilst drawing a picture with crayons of something that brings them joy (Do this yourself - it’s fun!). It’s a very simple activity but it was so good to be able to go round the class asking them about what really makes them happy.

The other activity that I noticed they really got into was giving them a list of feelings and corresponding bible verses for them to look up. I heard them chatting to each other saying ‘OK if you feel sad/scared/lonely/worried you should read this...’ I loved how they were choosing a feeling that they related to and reading the Bible to each other. This is actually something that brought me a lot of joy - seeing young people who don’t necessarily read the bible often reading the bible to their friends to encourage them.

At the end of the lesson we give them a calming listening activity and are able to hand them back to their teacher relaxed and happy. I hope that the information helps them with their GCSE RS but more than that I hope that by giving them a bit of space, it’s sparked some contemplation of their own about some of the deeper questions that the lesson brings to light.

Steph

Last week I had the opportunity to complete my work experience with Step, where I took part in a wide range of activities and projects. Throughout the week I was made to feel incredibly welcome and was given a great insight into what it is like to work as part of the Step team.

The main project I worked on was helping to create a new Space Mat. The theme we chose for the new space mat was “Big Questions.” The mat contains 14 sections filled with activities and resources designed to encourage people to think about some of the biggest questions of the world and help young people reflect on them. I particularly enjoyed helping to develop creative ideas and activities for the project.

During the week I also attended Step lunch clubs and helped support several lessons in schools. This gave me valuable experience of seeing how Christians work with children and young people in education settings.

Another event that I enjoyed this week was helping at the volunteer training day, where I learnt new skills like how to tell stories and leading activities, and presenting confidently in front of others. I also enjoyed meeting and speaking with many of the volunteers throughout the day.

Overall, my week at Step was a really valuable and enjoyable experience. I gained confidence, developed new skills, and took part in lots of engaging activities. I would definitely recommend work experience at Step to other students, as it provides a welcoming environment and teaches skills that can be useful in many different careers.

Thanks Step!
J (STAGS) 

Last week I had the fun of bringing the Space Mats into Katherine Warington School for the first time as a part of their Diversity Week. I had been asked to run an activity representing Christianity, and it felt like this would be an exciting space to offer a glimpse into various world and societal issues for which Christians seek to make a positive difference.

It was a new venture in the school, and we were given space in their meeting hall to spread out the mats and resources, 12 stations in total, each themed around an area of justice and containing an engaging acivity for the students to try. There were some convenient benches at one end where the students could sit whilst I briefed them on how to get the best out of the Space Mats.

Notably on the day, one class, who had been overly chatty when I had previously met them in their classroom, gave their full attention on the mats and seemed absorbed with the activities on offer.

3 different classes came and spent time with us with lots of contemplation with a very different style of learning from our typical Step lesson in a classroom or youth group. I’m sure many words and thoughts were whispered by the Holy Spirit, if only I had time to find out how God had spoken to each young person.

Jez

We recently had the privilege of spending two fantastic days with the Year 10 students at Nicholas Breakspear, with around 90 students taking part each day. What unfolded was a rich mix of fun, honesty, and some genuinely meaningful conversations.

When illness meant they were unable to return for the second day, our team had to quickly step in and lead the sessions themselves. What could have been a challenge instead became a real highlight. The space allowed for some thoughtful and honest discussions, particularly around big questions of faith and the existence of God. It was a great reminder that sometimes the unexpected moments create the deepest impact.

One of the standout sessions was the Life Auction, where students bid on things they valued—before being invited to reflect on their own worth. This led into powerful conversations about identity and value, concluding with the message of how deeply each of them is valued by God.

We were also encouraged to see clear next steps, with five students signing up for the upcoming Haven Hope course in school. It’s always exciting to see young people choosing to continue exploring these questions beyond the day itself.

I wonder what the words 'escaping reality' mean to you - lying on the beach on a tropical island? Maybe hiking or rafting in the mountains, admiring stunning views? Perhaps reading a book with a cuppa? Or maybe something completely different?

This was the theme that a group of Year 12 students explored at their ALPS conference at Verso Vineyard last week. For them, however, the focus was not on hiking or holidaying somewhere remote, but on escaping the reality of their mobile phones, which pervade every aspect of their lives.

Created as a conference by students for students, the event brought together over 250 Year 12s from across the Alban Learning Partnership Schools - Townsend, Marlborough, STAGs, Loreto, Nicholas Breakspear, and Samuel Ryder Academy.

It was a highly successful day, with each school’s student leadership team delivering sessions around the theme of the day. There were also opportunities to have fun together in the 'Fun Zone', where students could enjoy time on the inflatables, participate in an egg drop, or relax with some colouring, among other activities.

Students explored the pros and cons of AI in depth and challenged each other to 'escape' by spending time on their hobbies and passions, and by prioritising real-life relationships rather than focusing solely on communication via their phones. It was encouraging to see so many students presenting to their peers with confidence and skill. They had researched their topics well and demonstrated a refreshing awareness of the challenges posed by social media and AI.

It was wonderful to see students from all the schools collaborating so effectively, and there was a real buzz and sense of excitement throughout the day. Helena and Mr Tominey from Townsend deserve a special mention, as they worked tirelessly behind the scenes to help organise the event and ensure students had everything they needed - from prizes and eggs for the egg drop to inflatables, pens, and paper.

Overall, it was a really positive day, and it is exciting to think that this conference is now set to become an annual event in the academic year.

Amy :)

Youth Alpha is a brilliant course which we run across multiple schools and with multiple churches. This academic year we have delivered the course in Loreto and Townsend, with ongoing conversations on how more schools can be involved next year.

On top of this, this year, we have launched an area wide Youth Alpha, with Illuminate, St Paul's Church and Young Life. We launched this as a 'next step' invitation, off the back of the Illuminate Cathedral event in February.

It has been a fantastic course so far, with around 8 students attending each week, including the majority coming along to the Alpha Day.

The Alpha Day is a chance to spend slightly longer with the young people, looking specifically at the Holy Spirit. Conversations include questions about:

• Fruits of the Spirit
• What image comes to mind when thinking about the Holy Spirit
• The Holy Spirit being a helper

I had a brilliant conversation with 2 young girls, as they asked multiple questions about speaking in tongues, with one of them asking if I could teach them to say ‘Hello’ in tongues! As amusing as this was, it was a great question and opportunity to discuss more about the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

The session concludes with an opportunity to pray ‘Holy Spirit, Come’. This again was a beautiful and peace-filled moment, which led to honest and open discussion about waiting on God and being filled with faith that the Bible says, ‘Anyone who asks receives!’

Mary

You may be aware that this year, we have a fundraising campaign called ‘Love Your Enemy for Step’. The premise is to be sponsored to wear your rival’s football shirt for a day. It has so far raised over £6,000 and captured the imagination of so many people. It has also sparked numerous conversations with young people in schools about what Jesus’ instruction to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute you mean and how the world needs to hear and respond to this now more than ever.

On Easter Sunday I wore an Arsenal kit for the second and (most probably) last time. As the founder of the campaign, I decided I would emphasise the link to Jesus’ words by undertaking the challenge on both major Christian festivals. After a more private occasion on Christmas Day, where only my family and a couple of friends witnessed it in person, Easter Sunday was a different experience. Walking through Dunstable, chatting to neighbours and attending my own church definitely felt a lot more awkward.

I had a few weird and very shocked looks from people who knew I was a Spurs fan, while others who justifiably assumed I was an Arsenal fan consoled me about Arsenal’s loss to Southampton the previous evening (including a Southampton fan visiting the church). Apparently, I was very brave to wear it had I been an Arsenal fan- but even braver as a Tottenham supporter.

I was very uncomfortable but then loving our enemies can feel a bit strange and uncomfortable. It can be costly - with Jesus’ death on the cross the ultimate example of the sacrifice loving our enemies can demand. Maybe wearing a rival’s kit isn’t that bad after all.

This time, I decided to do something a little bit more. I committed to praying for all the Arsenal fans I knew for the following week, especially those who ‘persecute me’ for being a Spurs fan (friendly banter in my case, but it’s definitely not always friendly in the footballing world). I should also add that a couple of fans from other clubs also got some prayer!

I received specific prayer requests from some and I shared Bible verses or encouragements that came to my mind as I prayed. I also decided to pray for the players and staff at Arsenal, especially those who are following Jesus so passionately and openly. Although I didn’t quite manage to pray for them to win any silverware, I’d like to think my heart has softened towards the people associated with the club. Maybe that’s the aim Jesus had for us as he instructed that we pray for our enemies.

I wonder what would happen if all of us decided to pray for our enemies – not just our footballing rivals, but those who have really hurt us, annoy us or we just don’t like. How might God change our heart if we took Jesus’ words seriously and loved our enemies and prayed for those who persecute us?

Thank you to all those who have already given to this campaign. If you haven’t but would like to, it’s not too late to sponsor me (or another team member who has undertaken the challenge). Simply go to https://www.justgiving.com/team/loveyourenemyforstep 

Geoff

The Journey of an SJL Student

We took some time as a team recently to reflect on the different sessions that we run in our schools, what has worked well and what areas of the work could be done better. As part of this, I reflected on the journey a student might take with Step throughout their time at school and what they learn about God. It is amazing to see the opportunities we get to share Jesus, consistently with them. Each school looks different but here is the example of an SJL students’ journey with Step:

Year 7:
I am Connected – We meet them first in Life skills – a session to help them creatively think about their new classmates, help them recognise their similarities and how important the connections we have and make are. This introduces God as relational.

Who is Jesus/Parables – They then get to have two of our core Jesus Curriculum lessons. Learning all about Who Jesus is and what He achieved. They are also offered a gift of a Youth Testament from Good News for Everyone.

Culture Day – The last time we see them in Year 7 is on our Culture Day! A day full of fun, helping them recognise that differences are to be celebrated. Showing them that God cares deeply for each person.

Haven – Some students come on the Haven Hope course, and we have 6 weeks of encouraging and supporting them. This course has a liturgy at the end of each session, bringing God into the centre of our wellbeing.

Lunch club – We currently have around 8 regular year 7 students coming to our lunch club (mostly those with no faith and some Muslim students too).

Year 8:
Walk through the Bible – They get to start the year off with another fun session – a chance to act and see the bigger picture of the Bible. They see God as creator with a plan and a purpose.

Prejudice – A chance to look outwardly and be challenged to love our neighbours. Showing God as someone who cares deeply for humanity.

Year 9: 
Ultimate questions – Is God real? How was the universe created? What is the purpose of life? Is there an afterlife? Some huge questions and brilliant conversations happen, challenging the young people to have a reason for their beliefs.

Christianity through Art – An opportunity to reflect on how art and culture around us can be a way to worship God.

Year 10:
Church Visit – The students have now chosen to study RS and get to come for a day at Verso church. They are shocked at the start of the day with Secret church, recognising that people die for believing in Jesus and then throughout the day learn what it is people are so passionate about. This day helps students see God as present, not just stuck in an old building but relatable to them today.

Christian worship – We help them take Worship out of its box! Broadening their view of what it means to worship God with our whole lives.

Stress – The students are given a session to wind down and find ways to manage their stress. This reveals God as someone who cares for them in their lowest moments and provides comfort.

Forgiveness – A challenging lesson to help them think through what forgiveness means. They get to see God as just, fair and forgiving.

Year 11:
Identity – We help the students engage inwardly, recognising and learning more about who they are. This shows God as creator, caring deeply for each person.

Grill a Christian – This session helps them see how much God is relevant and alive for Christians today!

Year 12:
Job – They experience a session on suffering, grappling with these questions and seeing God as someone who is judge but ultimately has a plan for the world.

Year 13:
Grill a Christian – We finish with the students with another grilling. We show that God can handle their doubts and questions, that this is a good thing and He wants them to understand Him more.

Ultimately, a young person’s journey with Step introduces them to a picture of God that is loving, kind, just, relational and revealing Him as someone trustworthy, logical and who cares deeply for every single one of us.

On 5th March 2026, exactly one year after our Christianity Day last year, we had a fantastic day with the new Year 7 students at Verulam, supported by a team of 16 Step staff and volunteers, who delivered 24 lessons before lunch.

Our Who is Jesus lesson asked the question whether Jesus was telling the truth about his claim to be God or whether he was lying or crazy. Together, we examined the evidence, including fulfilled prophecies and miracles that demonstrated his authority over nature, illness, sin, and even death. One of the joys of working with young people is they see perspectives I've never considered before. In one lesson, a boy reflected about Jesus turning water into wine and said "I bet he was invited to lots of weddings after that".

The remainder of the day was filled with a variety of engaging activities. During the Parables session, students explored the stories of the Lost Son and the Good Samaritan, reflecting on ideas such as forgiveness, grace, and the importance of loving others. In the interactive Fairtrade lesson, they considered issues of injustice around the world and discussed how Christian faith encourages people to respond through their choices and actions - even in something as everyday as shopping. The programme also included an Alpha Taster session and an inter-form Kahoot quiz, where a team of four boys from Brampton House took first place and won the prestigious prize of a Cadbury Creme Egg each.

Every student was given a copy of the Good News for Everyone New Testament (formerly Gideons) to use during the day, and as was the case last year, almost all of them chose to keep their copy as a gift.

We’re excited to continue journeying with this year group throughout their time at Verulam starting with a series of lessons next week on Jesus' resurrection through the story of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.

We are super excited about the upcoming Illuminate Big Questions event, where two fantastic speakers from the Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics will be coming to answer young people’s big questions about faith and life.

Starting with a short talk exploring cancel culture, we will then dive into two sections of Q&A where young people can send in their questions via a platform called Slido and then vote for the questions they would most like to be answered in the time. There will be a break between the Q&A times for the young people to discuss and process what they’ve heard.

The speakers from OCCA are always phenomenal and these events have always gone down very well before.

Tickets are just £5 and will include snacks. Please book any interested young people via the link below:
https://illuminateyouth.co.uk/@illuminate/e/bigquestions

The Step Leadership Conference has now become a firm fixture in the Step Calendar and whilst the past three conferences have been brilliant, there was something special about this year’s event, and it really did feel like God was with us with in an extra special way.

Not only was it an exceptional year because we reached several new schools for the first, time, two of which were from schools beyond our usual remit of St Albans and Harpenden, but also because we had an increase in the number of students attending, growing from around 70 young people to over 90 this time.

We also grew in the number of sessions students could attend – with five exceptional speakers and topics to choose from instead of just four. This year, students were able to learn about servant leadership, conflict management, how to find your tribe, The Careers Equation and how to use your influence to make an impact.

All the seminars were delivered by highly experienced, inspirational Christian leaders and we are so grateful to all them for giving up their time to pour into our young people. A particular highlight was the keynote speaker at the end of the day, a third-year student from Warwick University, Isaac, who brought so much joy, laughter and energy with him. Isaac spoke about the key qualities of great leadership, before explaining how and why he chooses Jesus as the best leader ever to follow.

There was so much energy throughout the day, and we all commented on how friendly and mature the students were. I met a student who had attended the conference a few days later when I was visiting her school and she enthused eloquently about how much she had got from the day, how she had met over twenty new people from other schools and how much fun it had been.
 
I even had the unexpected joy of walking into the youth auditorium at lunch time to find a group of students singing “hallelujah” round the keyboard Isaac was playing, another on the drums, and a further group gathered round a lad with a guitar – it was like a worship jamming session!

It is hard to sum up this event in just a few paragraphs, so many “God conversations” happened, so much “God networking” occurred and so many seeds were sown. It was a wonderful day.

And I can’t finish this article without mentioning the huge team who helped make the event happen – too many amazing people to mention by name, but without such a collective effort this kind of event simply can’t happen. I am so grateful to everyone who served so willingly, whether by collecting over £400 worth of sandwiches from M & S, moving a lot of tables and chairs around, leading seminars, taking photos, welcoming students, serving refreshments, to hoovering and sweeping, to name but a few roles. Everyone’s contribution was essential in making the day the huge success that it was. Thank you all and thank you God for blessing us so much!

Amy

Over the last 5 weeks we have been with a great bunch of Yr12 students at St George’s School doing the Leadership Foundations course. I have been so impressed with the students so far, they have been enthusiastic and engaged, really wanting to learn as much as they can about being a great leader.

We have done 5 sessions so far. The topics have been teamwork, skills and qualities, influence, identity and character. This week we will be looking at the topic of perseverance. Each week they are not just learning tips on how to be a good leader or how to give a good speech or reflection, but we are encouraging them to learn about themselves to help them be the best leader that they can be.

The week that really stood out to me was the identity week and the activity that we did with the hats. During this week we were looking at our beliefs about ourselves, others and the world around us, our values and our personality and how these things can impact how we show up in the world and as a leader.

The students absolutely loved the activity where they had to choose a hat for each person in their group and tell them how it represented that person. They were so good at encouraging one another and thoroughly enjoyed receiving these positive words. The insight that they had about their fellow students even though they may have only journeyed with them for a few weeks was very perceptive.

One of the students exclaimed ‘This is such a good activity!’. This excitement reminded me that we often need encouragement just like a plant needs to be watered. Young people (in fact all people) really thrive when they are spoken to with words of encouragement and truth.

Sadly, we tend to remember the negative words spoken about us more than the positive (negativity bias), so I love that we get the chance to build the students up with our words and that they also get to practice this vital skill with each other.

One of the most important things about identity that I hope the students took away with them was to stay in their own lane - we shared this quote with them from Brené Brown:
“Stay in your own lane. Comparison kills creativity and joy.”

It is so hard when we are talking about who we are not to look to the left and the right to check out the competition but hopefully after these wonderful students have finished the course they will know that we have all been designed in such a unique way and that they are all a perfectly shaped piece in a puzzle and this knowledge will help them to stay away from comparison and be who they truly are.

Steph

Last February, Young Life launched their new St Albans club hosted at Marshalswick Baptist Church and a year on, it is going from strength to strength. It currently meets fortnightly as well as engaging in Illuminate events such as the Cathedral event at the end of the month.

For those who aren’t aware, Step has been working with Young Life to help them establish a link here in St Albans. Their new worker, Gizzy, is also a Step volunteer and joins us in our two lunchtime clubs at Sandringham and other activities. The group is blessed with many leaders including two from Step and we are regularly getting nearly 20 young people attend.

Last week, I got the privilege of leading the talk for the first time (Mary’s already done two!). I was asked to look at the Incarnation of Jesus so kicked off with a question- how would you explain a smartphone to someone from Roman times? It definitely sparked a lot of engagement and was the perfect hook to exploring how God would help his creation, whose brain couldn’t comprehend the complexity of a divine being, know him better.  

The talk focused on Jesus healing the paralysed man and how this account provided evidence that Jesus was God in human form (power over sickness and a claim to have power over sin) but also revealed what God was like (caring, compassionate and merciful).

Conversations flowed as we finished with discussions in groups about what they thought God was like considering all the stories they knew about Jesus.

Our hope is that more young people from local schools will become connected with this group and that the relationship between Step and Younglife continues to be positive.

Geoff 

Step recently supported the Head Boy, Head Girl and student leadership hustings at Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School, followed by a leadership morning hosted at Verso.

We listened to 15 candidates deliver thoughtful and courageous speeches, outlining their hopes for the school community if elected. Students spoke passionately about greater support for SEND students, expanding sports spaces and clubs, developing charity weeks, and faithfully being the voice of their peers. The care shown for others and the desire to serve was both clear and encouraging.

Following the hustings, the candidates joined Step for a Leadership Bootcamp, exploring leadership through a Christian lens. Practical challenges - including a scavenger-style team activity, drawing without touching the pen, and building structures from spaghetti and bagels - created space for collaboration, creativity and problem-solving.

The building challenge became a powerful picture of leadership. With limited and imperfect resources, students had to decide how to create something strong, balanced and dependable. Those who succeeded did not rush to take control, but listened, tested ideas, noticed the strengths around them and adapted when things didn’t go to plan. It echoed a key truth of Christian leadership: leaders do not build alone, and influence is shaped by how well we steward what we have been given.

Throughout the morning, students had moments to reflect on Jesus, whose leadership was marked not by status but by service, humility and sacrifice. Candidates were encouraged to name good character in one another, recognise their own limitations, and consider how leadership is expressed in everyday faithfulness, not just visible roles.

Reflecting back to the school was genuinely challenging because the standard across the group was so high. Some students will make excellent Head Boy and Head Girl, while many others will form a strong and balanced leadership team around them. While it is natural to hope for the top roles, Christian leadership reminds us that the body is made of many parts, and that significance is not defined by title.

Our prayer is that every candidate - whether appointed to the most visible positions or not - will recognise the value they bring, continuing to lead with faith, integrity and generosity wherever they are placed.

We refer to it as our Volunteer Training Day, but it’s much more. Once a term we make a date to gather our volunteers together for a day, with our latest being on Tuesday 13th Jan. We tend to have a ‘soft start’ to help everyone navigate traffic, so the coffee is on from 9.30am and the first session begins at 10am, with a warm welcome and a reflection.
 
Each time we meet the pattern is roughly the same, but the content is variable depending on the time of year. In September we run refresher courses for Safeguarding and Cultural Awareness, as mandatory before volunteers go into the new school year. In May we will run a refresher course for Step Up Days (transition from Primary to Secondary School) that will be delivered in the Summer term.
 
For this Spring term day, we opened with a session on Christian Nationalism. For some of our team this was new, for others it provided additional information, other perspectives, an opportunity to begin an ongoing discussion and signposting to other resources to upskill ourselves.
 
This was followed by participation in our Christian Worship lesson which has been updated and we have bookings to deliver it in schools up to Easter. After lunch we ran two seminars at the same time. One was Identity as part of our Blueprint lessons for year 12 and 13 (6th form) to showcase the content and how it is delivered in school. The other was investigating lunchtime engagement, specifically themed cafes and their potential impact.  
 
Our volunteers are good at letting us know what they think. They have told us how much they enjoy being able to gather (fellowship), share food, have the time to chat to Schools Coordinators about what is coming up and to chat with each other about what they have been doing with Step.

They felt it was helpful to have the updated lesson run for them, challenged by the discussion about Nationalism, and encouraged by how much Step can do in school. Lots of the team appreciated the jacket potato lunch on a cold day!
 
If you are interested in joining us as a volunteer, please contact our Volunteers Coordinator on Terrie@stepschoolswork.org.uk