Church Youth Weekend Away, 25-27 September 2026
Thank You! A huge thank you to everyone in our church family who supported our recent Youth Weekend Away at Adventure Plus, Bampton, through your prayers, encouragement, and practical help. Led by Rev. Oliver, Rev. Katie, Scott and Diana, we took 13 young people away for a fantastic weekend of fun, fellowship, teaching and adventure… and we’re delighted to report that we returned with all 13 as well!
Over the course of the weekend we explored the theme of emotions through four Bible studies: Hannah and how “Patience, Waiting and Hope for the Future”, Peter in “Bigmouth Strikes Again”, Jonah as the “Angry Little Man”, and Rahab, whose remarkable journey took her from Sex Worker, to Spy, to Saint. The young people engaged thoughtfully, asked some excellent questions, and showed great honesty as we reflected together on how God meets us in every emotion and circumstance.
There was also plenty of action to balance the thinking time. Team games, fencing, canoeing and archery tag brought out everyone’s competitive spirit, while football provided some energetic downtime. As for the evenings, several rounds of Mafia (think The Traitors, but with even less evidence and more wild accusations) ensured that nobody quite knew who to trust by the end of the weekend!
Most importantly, we saw friendships deepen, confidence grow, lots of laughter shared, and opportunities for young people to encounter God in new ways. We are incredibly grateful for your prayers, which sustained us throughout the weekend and were answered in countless ways.
Coming Soon: A video featuring photos and highlights from the Youth Weekend Away will be shown during the All Together Service in November. We look forward to sharing some of the memories and celebrating all that God did over the weekend with the wider church family.
Yours: Rev. Oliver, Rev. Katie, Scott and Diana
Calling All Parents & Carers – September 2026
Hope you’ve had a great summer! Our Children’s & Young People’s programme has restarted with the new academic year.
Our usual monthly patterns looks like this:
1st Sunday of the month 10am: All Together at St John’s —an all-age service with art, craft and activities.
2nd Sunday of the month 10am: Choristers sing at St Mary’s — OR— there is Junior Church (“Sunday School”) at St John’s;
in the evening there’s the “TIG” youth group, 7pm-8:15pm at St John’s; see details below*
3rd Sunday of the month 10am: Junior Church at St John’s — with breakfast beforehand;
in the afternoon the Choristers sing at Evensong; St Mary’s, 5:30pm
4th Sunday of the month 10am is a Joint Service, alternating between St Mary’s & St John’s; either way there’s Junior Church;
in the evening there’s the “Go 4th” home group, 7pm-8:15pm at St John’s; see details below**
We also have lots of one-off concerts and events, including a “scratch jukebox musical” based on the life of Moses on Saturday September 12th at St Mary’s. Plans are also afoot for Christmas, but as it’s only just September I’ll leave that for now!
Meanwhile, and as usual, do get in touch if you have any questions, comments, concerns etc.
Your children matter to us and we take our responsibility to them, and you, seriously (while also having as much fun as we can.)
Hope to see some of you and your fantastic kids on Sunday at St Mary’s and/or St John’s over the autumn. God bless you!
Oliver (The Revd Oliver Harrison, Team Vicar)
* Our brilliant youth group, “TIG” (“Together In God”) for Year 6 and up
** “Go 4th” is a Bible study and discussion group for young people who want to explore their faith in more depth, ask questions, and come away thinking about God, life, themselves and others in a new, more mature, way.
Youth Weekend Away, 2025
In 2025 our Youth Weekend Away was a fantastic time for all who went. A huge thank you to everyone for your amazing prayers, encouragement, and fundraising before, during, and after the weekend! Your support made it possible for our young people to enjoy a weekend packed with faith, fun, and friendship.
Our theme, “Love Yourself, Love Your Neighbour, Love Your Community, Love God,” inspired us to think about what it truly means to live out love every day. Alongside moments of reflection, we had plenty of adventure — from the Postman’s Walk and Leap of Faith to Archery, Jacob’s Ladder, and Raft Building — all filled with laughter, teamwork, and new challenges. A massive shoutout to Kt, Paul, Diana, and Scott for leading with such energy, care, and joy. Thank you to our whole church family for your continued love and support — we couldn’t do it without you!
It is a privilege and a delight to be able to engage with children, young people and families and to journey together as co-disciples. We work with children, young people and families in all sorts of different ways and our ongoing ministry in this area has led to us being recognised as a Family-Friendly Church by the diocese.
Click on the buttons below to find out what is going on in Kidlington and Hampton Poyle.