Involving all generations in treasuring creation is the aim of Messy Church Goes Wild – Nanpantan (near Loughborough). Led by intergenerational pioneer Hazel Wragg, along with a team of devoted volunteers, it meets twice a month, once in a scout hut and once in local woodland. It’s a newly signed-up member of the Messy Momentum project and grew out of an earlier initiative at St Mary’s, Nanpantan, ‘Mossy Church’. Some 30 or so people have been joining every session since the relaunch, with new faces every time.
Hazel and her colleagues had been praying all through the summer of 2025 about what to do with Mossy Church which, though popular, was struggling with fluctuating attendance. When her PCC put her on the spot about her plans, she was super honest. ‘I had to say, “God’s not told me yet.” It was so awkward!’
But the very next day, when she met with the church’s children and young people leaders, God’s plan began to emerge, beginning with the new scout hut nearby, right in the heart of the community. ‘We should do Messy Church there!’ said the team, and the idea began to snowball. But before they got too carried away, Hazel wanted to dig a bit deeper into Messy Church.
‘At the time – I apologise for this now! – I had a slightly outdated view of Messy Church. I thought of it as more of a craft club for parents and young children, which didn’t seem to quite fit with our passion to be intentionally intergenerational. But of course, as soon as I went on the website I discovered it’s all about being an all-age community!’
And that wasn’t all Hazel discovered. ‘I found the Messy Momentum pilot information and I could hardly take it all in. We were so close to the deadline for applications, I thought we wouldn’t make it but I just typed it all out as fast as I could. Poor Sophie Harber, [Messy Momentum project lead], reading it must have thought what is this woman on!? I told her we’d been praying all summer, and this might be the answer to our prayers: we’d really love to be part of your thing! And then we got the reply saying, Oh, can we meet with you? And then they said yes!’
And so they are, part of the Messy Momentum ‘thing’! With an intergenerational team of volunteers, including those as young as 9 and 11, they launched in January, propelled by passion, vision and the warm support of the busily fundraising wider church.
‘It’s been so encouraging to be part of Messy Momentum because it’s all about being intentionally intergenerational, and we are trying to get that in at every stage of planning: the preparation, the facilitation, delivery, the celebration, everything. There are new things like, how do we incorporate young volunteers, and do that in a way where we’re still safeguarding them? So to be able to share that with the Messy Momentum group and have someone say, “Oh, we already have young volunteers, we’ll send you the paperwork,” has been brilliant. It’s given me such a fantastic framework to work with.’
The intention was always to be Messy Church Goes Wild – Nanpantan, not Messy Church, Nanpantan, to emphasise their focus on the outdoors, on being in nature and celebrating God’s creation.
‘Messy Church Goes Wild – Nanpantan is who we are. We hope that by linking ourselves so clearly to the Messy Church name, if there are people in the community looking at our banner, they will know that there’s a welcome for people of all faiths or none.‘
‘We really want to be invitational: moving into the scout hut, as well as in the woods, having that presence in the community is about saying this is for you. We want to be church in a way that invites you and welcomes you, and you can be part of that from the get-go. Just bring a coat because we’re going to be toasting marshmallows outdoors!’
So, why is outdoor focus so crucial?
‘That comes from our roots in Mossy Church and from St Mary’s being an eco-church. We believe God calls us to care for his creation, to treasure it, and that’s a real priority for a number of us. We care for creation, love being outdoors, and feel more able to connect to God there.’
From making sound maps of the forest, to walking barefoot through leaf mould, the activities have been revelatory.
‘The barefoot walking was the most in-depth, genuinely intergenerational conversation we’ve ever had around the campfire. Everybody listens to everybody, whatever their age. Obviously, the thing about kids is they don’t self-filter: they just say what they’re thinking, and some of the things they said were so profound. Their sense of spirituality and connection. Wow!’
Hazel knows she isn’t alone in experiencing the woodland as a ‘thin place’, where a sense of connection with God – or simply creation – can come more easily than elsewhere.
‘I think of that phrase from Psalms, “the heavens declare your glory”. There are so many of the Psalms which explore that experience where we look at creation and we see an aspect of God. We see another aspect of God when we read about Jesus in the Bible, but in terms of just straight on looking and connecting, that’s right there in the woods.
In a world in which we can feel increasingly disconnected, connecting with each other and connecting in nature, and even better, doing both at the same time, is invaluable. It’s a treasure. It’s special. And we desperately need to wake up and care for our creation! In terms of our own survival, if nothing else, but we should long to care for it, for it’s own sake, because it’s such a precious gift.
‘I honestly believe that people who have no faith can still connect with that sense of awe you feel in creation and from there, they can find a connection to our Creator. Our Creator God loved us so much that he sent his son and he wants a relationship with us. We want to hold space for those who don’t feel that ability to open up to God in traditional settings. We hope those people will find that possible with Messy Church Goes Wild – Nanpantan and we hope they’ll make it their home.’
Messy Church Goes Wild: How to get started outdoors
This 90-minute live and interactive Zoom Masterclass is designed to help you confidently start or grow a Messy Church Goes Wild in your own setting. Together, we’ll explore what it looks like to be church outdoors, sharing stories from groups already meeting outside and offering simple, practical ways to get going, whatever your context.
30 June 2026 1.00pm - 2.30pm BST
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