Are we allowed to talk about Jesus in schools?

In UK public schools, religious education (RE) is a mandatory subject taken by all students. This provides opportunities for Volunteer Youth Workers and Ministers to go into their local schools to contribute to teaching the RE curriculum by presenting a Christian perspective on a range of topics. During these assemblies and lessons, young people get to hear aspects of the Christian message as part of their school day. Many of our Volunteer Youth Workers also lead lunch time or after school clubs that combine Christian teaching with games, crafts, and other activities.

While the opportunity to speak about Christ with young people in school is incredible, we believe that relationships are also key to seeing young people come to know Jesus. Going into schools creates opportunities to build relationships with young people in their own environment, and for this reason we aim to seek out every opportunity possible to interact with students during the school day. Many of our Volunteer Youth Workers regularly volunteer to help with additional subjects like music, drama, or PE. They also lead mentoring sessions, school-based community service projects, and sports clubs.

Every time we walk through the doors of a school, we have an incredible chance to show young people and school staff what Jesus looks like through how we treat them in the small, everyday encounters. We are constantly praying that occasions to invite them to events like café church or a youth club will come up, so that we can build on the foundations that are being built in school.