Christians are increasingly ready to return to face to face gatherings according to the Christian Conference Trust.

The Trust, which operates nationwide conference centres serving Christian organisations, educational groups and charities has seen a strong increase in bookings and says it’s on track for a record-breaking year. 

The Trust has received almost triple the enquiries received in the first week of January compared to that in December, with over half of all recent enquiries from churches and organisations that have not visited their centres before.

To cater for the increased demand, it's expanding its facilities with 38 new bedrooms, 8 new meeting rooms and a further 4 meeting spaces and a conference hall in development. Three extra staff members have also been recruited - in addition to 120 new hospitality roles introduced since the spring of 2021. 

John Heasman is the Trust’s Chief Executive.

‘We are seeing a move away from online events back to ‘in person’ conferences and meetings.

“We are all grateful for the way technology has helped us in our ministries over the past couple of years but essentially we are all relationship people who are designed to spend time together.

“It’s been encouraging to see so many new groups for the first time as well as loyal guests returning to our venues. 

“Almost 50,000 visitors have so far benefited from switching off their laptops and spending valuable time together at our centres; worshipping, learning and enjoying fellowship in each other’s company since we re-opened last summer.”

Christian Conference Trust has been serving churches and Christian organisations for over 100 years. 

The Trust says that although the last 2 years have been a challenging time for the conferencing sector, it is determined to invest in the future for the next generation of Christians, providing a space for their ministry to flourish.

Information about the Christian Conference Trust can be found here cct.org.uk