News by email Donate

Suggestions

Top Stories

Most Read

Popular Videos

Christ Church Winchester banner.JPG
Christ Church Winchester
Christ Church Winchester.JPG
Christ Church Winchester
World News

Winchester church opens doors for school pupils during teacher strikes

by Kelly Valencia

A church in Winchester has opened its doors for students to spend the day there as schools closed due to strike action in England and Wales.

Wednesday was the biggest day of walkouts in more than a decade, with up to half a million workers - including teachers as well as train and bus drivers - taking to the streets to demand better pay and conditions.

About 25 children spent the day at Christ Church in Winchester, taking part in activities such as team challenges, sports, tournaments and board games.

A quiet area was also provided for those who wanted to do schoolwork.

Dave Thornton, the church’s youth worker, told Premier they wanted to provide a “warm, safe space” for young people so they wouldn’t spend the day on their own.

“We are very aware that many young people are struggling with mental health. The NHS said last year that 18 per cent of seven to 16-year-olds have a probable mental health disorder. And that figure rose to just over 25 per cent for 17 to 19-year-olds.

“With all that background, we were wanting to provide just a safe, friendly, smiling place for young people to come," he continued.

Asked whether he would encourage other churches to follow suit, he said places of worship should make sure they work together with teachers to avoid undermining the strikes.

“I think it's really important that they talk to the teachers about it as well. I think if we're going to run something like this, we've got to do it really carefully. So we made sure that in all of our advertising, we were very careful about how we worded things. So for us, the main issue is that we're providing a safe and warm place for young people.”

The church is planning to run another youth drop-in during the next teachers' strike planned for 15th March.

A Monthly Gift Of $11 Makes A World Of Difference

In a world of fake news there’s never been a greater need for quality Christian journalism. Premier’s mission is to provide the Church with the most up to date and relevant news, told from a Christian perspective. But we can’t do it without you.

Unlike many websites we haven't put up a paywall — we want to keep our journalism free at the point of need and as open as we can. Premier’s news output takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. No one in the USA is sharing news like we are across radio, magazines and online so please help us to continue that today.

For a monthly gift of $11 or more we’d also be able to send you a free copy of the brand new Premier Bible, a wonderful Anglicised version of the NLT packed with exclusive bonus content, reading plan and resources to help you get the most out of scripture.

Your monthly support will make a world of difference. Thank you.

Support Us
Continue the conversation on our Facebook page

Related Articles

Sign up to our newsletter to stay informed with news from a Christian perspective.

News by email

Connect

Donate

Donate