Visit South


10.30am @ King Edward's Girls School

Come as you are.

No, really! This is a family and you're welcome with us.
But if you're after some info, read on (we reckon there's an answer here to pretty much every question!!!).

The basics.

What time is the meeting?
Come for 10.15am to find a seat that works for you and get a coffee.
We start at 10.30am and finish before 12noon.

Where is it?
It's at King Edward's Girls School, Edgbaston Park Rd, B15 2UB.

By car:

When you pull off Edgbaston Park Road into the school, the gates will be open and our welcome team can show you the way.

By bus:

King Edward's is a short walk up from the Bristol Rd, so any bus along there will get you a few hundred metres away. Get off at the University Sports Centre.

By train:

The nearest station is University station (0.8 miles away). If you walk through the University campus, it should be a 15-minute walk.
Is there parking?
Yes. There is plenty of parking within the school car park, just a short distance from the entrance.

What will happen in the meeting?

After coffee at 10.15am, we start at 10.30am.
Our mornings tend to consist of two main blocks.

In the first block (around 30 minutes), we'll worship God in song, led by musicians.
Don't worry, the words are on the screen.
We might have moments for reflection or joint prayer.
We encourage people to participate rather than spectate (though if you're new, go at your pace).
To help this, we intentionally leave space for anyone in the room to speak out.
The kids are a part of this time alongside the wider church.

Then there's a short break.

In the second block (around 50 minutes), we'll share news and connect with one another.
We'll spend time in prayer to God in a variety of ways.
We'll then hear a talk from the Bible, and respond to God together.
In this time, there is separate provision for children up to school year 6.

We finish before 12noon.

What about the kids?

Is there kids provision?
We love having the kids included in the meeting and so we start all together.
During the first 30 minutes, there's often a moment addressed directly to the children to help parents and carers engage them in the service.

Then, at about 11am, there'll be a short break when parents and carers can take kids to age-specific groups.
Creche is a space for parents and carers to stay and play with their young babies.
Totz is for those from 2.5 to school age, Kidz is for 4s-11s.
In both Totz and Kidz, parents / carers can leave the children with our teams and return to the wider church gathering.

What if my kids make a noise or a mess?
Urm...not 'if', but 'when'! Of course they will! God loves children (mess, noise and all!) It's all part of the fun!
Any eyes that turn your way will be of understanding and encouragement, nothing else. We're in this thing together.
If you feel uncomfortable personally, of course you can easily pop out the entrance area. People are in and out of our meetings all the time - you'll be fine.

What about my child’s additional needs?
We want to be an inclusive church and work hard to put this value into practice.
Our Kids and Totz team receive training in this, and as a church we'll do everything we can to help make this not just tolerable for your family, but a place where you thrive. Feel no hesitation in getting in touch to start a conversation about how we can help.


How accessible are the gatherings?

We want our meetings to be a welcoming space for all.

To help with this, we have put in place a few simple steps. If there's more we can do to be helpful, please get in contact.
Level access door: This is accessible from the car park and our Hospitality Team are on hand to open this for you.
Route to the meeting space: It is around 40metres from the level access door to the hall, with no steps.
Disabled toilets: We have access to a disabled toilet, near the level access (our Hospitality Team can help with this).
Printed lyrics: For those for whom standing or reading from the screen is difficult, we have a few copies of printed lyrics. These are at our Welcome Hub for you to access.
Talk notes: For any wanting to follow along, perhaps because English is not your first language, there are copies of the talk notes at our Welcome Hub.
Occasional different meeting room: Sometimes due to the school activities, we gather in the dining room. This is down a longer corridor and does have some steps to navigate. It is 120 metres from the level access entrance, with one set of eight steps with a rail either side, and a second set of two steps, with a rail either side.
We seek to ensure we communicate in advance (when we know!) about dates in this room, and do our utmost to keep this to a minimum.

What do I need to wear?

Please hear this - there's no dress code for church! This is a family! So come in whatever works for you.
Lots of people are in jeans, t-shirts, casual clothing. If you'd feel more comfortable being smarter, that's fine too. 

I want to come along, but I'm...

...new to thinking about faith.
You'll receive a warm welcome. We were all new once and you'll be free to participate as much or as little as you feel comfortable.
We regularly welcome and integrate people from a range of backgrounds.

...nervous socially.
A large church meeting can feel nerve-wracking for those of us who are more nervous socially, let alone if we have more serious anxiety. We understand this..
So, while we deliberately prioritise warmth and interaction in our meetings, if at any moment you'd rather have some space, that's fine.
You'll regularly hear things said from the front like: "If you don't want to take part in this bit, that's fine, just say 'I'm okay thanks'.  No problem."
Come as you are. We're all different and there's room for you here.

...not a great singer.
Don't tell anyone we said this, but you won't be on your own in that!
On a serious note, there's enough of us that you shouldn't feel too exposed. You can always just listen if that suits you better.
Most of all, know that our times of singing are not about sounding great, but about honouring God with our hearts.
If you're coming to worship God, it'll sound great to Him!

...not able to give a donation.
We know for many people who attend church infrequently, the pressure to give money can be unpleasant.
For sure, we encourage our members to give and give generously, but it's a private thing and most do this through online banking.
In fact, on a Sunday, we've stopped passing a plate round at all, and instead simply flag up our means of online giving.
That means you'll never be under any form of pressure to get your wallet out.

Coming along or got another question? 

Let us know you're coming. We'll save you a seat.