Leeds Faith in Schools began in response to a Faith in Leeds report, seeking to support
Christian students in secondary schools around Leeds. 30 years later, Leeds Faith in
Schools has grown and changed substantially but, nevertheless, still remains an integral part of the faith support in our city. Our mission statement is to be “Good News to the high
schools in Leeds” and that couldn’t be more true. Our presence is regularly in 9 secondary
schools in the city, with additional ad hoc support at 2 further secondary schools. The range of work we do is diverse and can be summarised under 3 headings: Educational,
Recreational and Pastoral.
Most prominently, in our partner schools and additional schools where there is capacity
within the team, we deliver seasonal lessons at Christmas and Easter, sharing the Christian message of these significant festivals. As well as this, we deliver lessons throughout the year on a variety of topics within RE and PSHE. We also deliver assemblies on a range of issues.
At Leeds Faith in Schools, we believe that life should be fun, and we bring that in our
recreational activities. Whether it’s running lunch clubs in schools, drop ins after school in
local churches near to the schools, running Rock Solid groups or Christian Unions, we
believe that all young people should have access to a safe place to relax and enjoy
themselves.
Within our time in schools, one of the main uses of our time is to assist pastoral support. We provide one to one mentoring with students highlighted by the school staff, single sex groups that focus on self esteem and relationships, and opportunities for spiritual exploration by running prayer spaces and retreat days.
An exciting thing that has happened this year is a new school partnership! In September
2024, The Co-op Academy Priesthorpe signed a partnership agreement with us. Ben, our
Team Leader has been going in one morning a week since September, and I, Emma,
completed the other half a day from October. Priesthorpe is a very diverse school, with
students coming from a variety of backgrounds and environments. There is a high
percentage of need and with a small team, the staff have been struggling to cover the
overwhelming demand of pastoral support. Since Ben and I have been sharing a full day of mentoring and groups, the response has been incredible. We are already seeing students who barely attended school in previous years increase their attendance and participation. It really is a privilege to walk alongside students who are incredibly vulnerable, have very few examples of safe attachments with adults and whose resilience is worn down by their very existence as opposed to their participation. As our presence and reputation in school has grown, teachers are now highlighting more and more high profile cases of students struggling with profound mental health issues, making the demand for our time and resources even more challenging. But we thank God for this opportunity to bring light to the darkness. Please pray for our finances to allow for more team to bless the students and staff at Priesthorpe, bringing gospel freedom where it is so greatly needed.
In honour of LFIS running for 30 years, we are holding a celebration evening at St Paul’s
Church. Join us on 28th February at 7.30pm for an evening of thanking God for His
faithfulness and blessings, and sharing our renewed vision and plans for growth.
If you would like to receive more information about Leeds Faith in Schools, please email
Emma Chadwick, emma@lfis.org, and you will be added to our newsletter list.
Please be praying for our team for the following areas:
1. Finances - that our finances and donations increase as we seek to meet the
increasing needs of schools around the city
2. Team capacity - that as need grows and our team are more stretched, that God
would be our source of strength and guidance
3. Governance - for more Trustees to volunteer to support this really exciting, thriving
charity!