Rhiannon Goulding

Idea – There are few families who don’t enjoy a good couple of hours at a creative play barn. We’ve found it to be one of the easiest events to invite families to. The children themselves not only have great fun, but you also get a good deal of time and opportunity to speak with parents while they are doing it.

In addition to asking families, we also encourage a good deal of Christians to come along, even those without families, to chat with the parents and encourage a real sense of welcome.
At such events we also take the various pop-up boards advertising our church and any relevant flyers etc, and simply invite people to take info regarding up and coming events.

This was our format…

Time – 3.30-5.30 on a Sunday

Organizing – It’s very easy to plan- contact a local play barn and ask to bring a group. They are often eager to have a group in and should do a deal. We got a free tea or coffee for every adult and a meal deal for the children and adults…

Adapt to you? – Why not invite a group of school-mums to a play barn for coffee as a one off or you might try to develop it into a weekly event?

Would I do it again ? – We did this event just after Christmas before the children went back to school and found it worked really well. Parents and children were keen to see one another before starting another school term. It was just the right event: easy, relaxed, informal, to come at the end of what many found to be a hectic Christmas. A real winner!