Schools Work

"Quotes"

"We may not be good at saying this but we want you to know we really appreciate all the work you do in our school" - Deputy Head of local School

"The Experience is great! My Tuesdays used to be boring but now they aren't, it keeps me out of trouble. LOADS OF FUN!" - Student

"An excellent lesson with some brilliant resources!" - OFSTED 2003

Our aim in schools is to be a support to teachers and pupils, trying to serve them in different ways. We believe that within this we are being the 'good news', whether this is through helping someone to spell, encouraging someone to use their gifts and abilities or actually sharing our faith.

Assemblies

An opportunity to establish a link with pupils and teachers, to make them laugh, and to communicate one truth, whether Christian or moral.

Lessons

We take lessons covering topics which include looking at main Christian beliefs or events, how Christianity affects our lives in terms of values, morals, lifestyle, relationships with other people, and how we view ourselves. Some team members are also trained as Tearfund educators for Citizenship lessons.

Support Work

This includes providing extra support for pupils who may be disadvantaged or have specific learning needs - getting alongside them, encouraging and caring for them and demonstrating that there is a God who cares whilst serving the school.

Head'z'up Project

Head'z'up is a project run in partnership with Swindon Academy, Clivey Project and Swindon Borough Council, providing local off-site learning for Year 11 students from the Academy who are at risk of exclusion, in any form, from main-site education. The students attend morning academic studies and social education activities with youth leaders, on several afternoons. The programme, as a whole, is aimed at broadening the learning experience and enabling students to make a more effective transition into the wider world of further education, training or employment. "xl" forms part of the Head'z'up project at the Academy.

Lunchtime Clubs

Each week we run 6 lunchtime clubs, and support a further 2, meeting over 120 young people week in, week out. 'The Experience', as many of them are called, is a mixture of fun, games and activities examining life and faith issues.

Rock Solid

At present due to lack of resources we are not able to run Rock Solid clubs. We do resource the local churches, however, enabling them to work through the material with their groups. For more information on Rock Solid Clubs see Church Resources page or follow the link here.

Detached

This means hanging out with groups of young people and getting to know them. Our aim is that through our friendships they would grasp something of how God sees them - as precious to Him.

SYFC is currently working in 9 of the 14 secondary schools in the Swindon area.

  • Churchfields - 'Experience' Lunchtime club and Assemblies.
  • Commonweal - 'Experience' Lunchtime club, Assemblies and Lessons
  • Crowdys - Providing Assembies
  • Dorcan - Assemblies 
  • Greendown - Assemblies, Lessons and C Zone Lunchtime Club  
  • Nova Hreod - Assemblies, Lessons, Experience lunchtime club
  • The Academy - Assemblies, Lessons, Detached work, Mentoring, Supporting teachers and students and the Head'z'up project.
  • Uplands - Providing Assemblies
  • Warneford - 'Experience' Lunchtime club and Lunchtime CU

Last year all of the above activities resulted in us having 23,000 opportunities to reach young people through assemblies, lessons and lunchtime clubs.

As well as the regular lunchtime clubs, we organised some one off events. We have also been involved with teacher prayer networks in 3 schools. To help us achieve all this we have 9 schools volunteers (people who commit to working in schools one or more lunchtime's a week) working with us.

So...what's happening in your school?  (not all of these groups are run by Swindon YFC)

  • Churchfields - Lunchtime Club - every Tuesday lunchtime from 1.20-2.10. Room 2F25. Contact Luella Dodgson at: luella@syfc.org.uk or at the SYFC Office (01793 829795)
  • Commonweal - Lunchtime Club - every Tuesday lunchtime 12.15-1.00 Room 06. Contact Luella Dodgson at: luella@syfc.org.uk or at the SYFC Office (01793 829795)
  • Crowdy's - Assemblies Contact Luella Dodgson at: luella@syfc.org.uk or at the SYFC Office (01793 829795)
  • Dorcan - Assemblies
  • Greendown - C-Zone - every Wednesday lunchtime Room H1.1 Contact Dave Davison (07891857680)
  • Kingsdown - Watch this space - Contact Chris Priddy (07947998948)
  • New College - Chaplaincy
  • Nova Hreod -Lunchtime Club - every Thursday lunchtime 12.55-1.45 Contemplation Room. Contact Luella Dodgson at: luella@syfc.org.uk or at the SYFC Office (01793 829795)
  • Ridgeway - CU - Watch this space 
  • Swindon Academy - Lunchtime Club - every Monday lunchtime 1.20-1.55 Room M6. Contact Simon Halls, SYFC Office (01793 829795)
  • Swindon College - Christian Union - every Tuesday from 12.00-1.00pm. Contact - cu.swindoncollege@gmail.com
  • Uplands - Assemblies
  • Warneford - Lunchtime Club - every Friday lunchtime 12.30-1.30pm. In room 9. Contact Naomi Ray-Mathur  (07701009320)
  • Wootton Bassett - Watch this space.