Before Messy Church launched at St Andrews Blidworth, a team member began looking for funding to help turn their hope into reality: a warm, welcoming place where local children and families could explore faith, get creative and share a meal. They discovered Messy Church microgrants, and after the grant was received, the team launched their new Messy Church in autumn 2025.
That launch was made possible by Jackie applying for a Messy Church microgrant. She found the process straightforward, and when the grant came through, it felt like an answer to prayer. The money made an immediate, practical difference: the team could buy some much-needed resources for Messy Church, and offer a cooked meal as part of the gathering.
With those resources in place, Bible stories and seasonal themes could come to life in memorable ways. At Harvest, families baked bread, made their own pizzas and created harvest wreaths. The food was so popular that it disappeared as soon as it had cooled. At other gatherings, the team explored stories including the Prodigal Son.
But the grant’s impact was about more than materials and food. One Saturday in June, five boys aged between seven and nine were cycling around the village when they stopped to see what was happening. They came in—and stayed.
The following month, two of them returned—a welcome encouragement to the team not to give up. Then, in September, the boys came back again. This time, they brought a mum, an aunt, a nanna and their younger cousins. A chance visit had begun to grow into a connection with a whole family.
Other connections are growing too, with parents and children from the local primary school joining in. Saturday afternoons are proving to be a particularly effective time for meeting people in the community and giving them an easy way to step through the door.
This is the difference a microgrant can make. A relatively small grant has helped St Andrews Blidworth offer a wider range of activities, more generous hospitality and a shared meal that brings people together. It has given the team the means to create a place where families feel welcome—not only to come once, but to return and bring others with them.
“We never know who God will prompt – or where it will lead.”
Could you be eligible for a Messy Microgrant?
Thanks to generous funding from the Church of England, we can offer a support package to CofE Churches in areas of need wanting to start a new Messy Church.
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