Investing in the next generation of Youth Ministers

Church Army is delighted to have been awarded funding by the Church of England’s Resourcing Ministerial Formation Innovation Fund and the 30k Project so that we can develop a three-year pilot project for Level 3 Apprenticeship Training, tailored for Church-Based Youth Workers.

The training is part of the Church of England’s 30k Project, to raise up 30,000 new children and youth ministers (both voluntary and employed) by 2030.

Carolyn Edwards, 30k Project’s Ministry with Children and Young People Officer, said, “We’re really excited about this pilot. It means we can create training for people who have experience as youth workers, but who don’t have much formal training, or who may be nervous about returning to study. We want to develop these people, not just as Youth Workers, but as Youth Ministers – people with a call from God to share faith not just with young people in the church, but those outside the church as well”.

The funding, totaling £285,000 over three years, will allow for the recruitment of a full-time Apprenticeship Programme Lead and a part-time Apprenticeship Programme Administrator.

Dr Elli Wort, Head of Training and Equipping for Church Army said, “The Apprenticeship Programme Lead will work to finalise the apprenticeship provider and develop material and processes for the formational work to grow these apprentices as ministers in their churches. If you’re an experienced youth worker who’s passionate about developing the next generation of youth workers to share their faith, especially people who may not be confident about learning, if you’ve trained others to become youth workers and have experience managing projects, we want to hear from you!”

The role of Apprenticeship Programme Lead is now open for applicants here

Apprenticeship Programme Lead – Church Army

The Level 3 Apprenticeships pilot programme aims to train between 45 and 60 youth ministers for employment in the Church of England between 2026 and 2028. By training and forming youth ministers, it supports churches to become younger by making missionary disciples who will make more missionary disciples. It also opens ministerial training to a broader range of people, helping the church become younger and more socio-economically diverse. These ministers will be involved in the recruitment and training of volunteers to work alongside them in their ministries, contributing to the 27,000 CYPF volunteers.

If your Diocese or project is interested in the Level 3 Apprenticeship Training for Church Based Youth Workers, please email Dr Elli Wort on elli.wort@churcharmy.org. Formal recruitment will begin once the Programme Lead is appointed, but expressions of interest are welcome at this point.