Grow closer to God and your community

Get your free church resource at growing-good.org.uk

Church Urban Fund’s Growing Good is a free course for churches, offering seven sessions to help your congregation grow in faith and make a difference in your community. Each session includes reflection on Scripture, time for discussion, inspiring stories and simple next steps.

Tried and tested by churches, Growing Good helps churches grow in:
1. Knowledge about their local community
2. Confidence in their local mission
3. Hospitality and relationships.

The Growing Good course can help you reach out through loving service and social action, grow spiritually through discipleship and invite everyone to be part of God’s transforming work.

Growing Good can be used in churches of all sizes, denominations and settings, helping people to grow new connections and make a difference where they live.

Sign up to Growing Good for free today

Grounded in both Scripture and empirical research, Growing Good is:
•          Flexible, practical and easy to use, adaptable for every local setting
•          Engaging, designed to involve everyone and to develop lay leadership
•          Encouraging, helping churches identify and celebrate what they are already doing well
•          Practical, offering simple, concrete ideas for churches to engage their communities in new ways

“I would really recommend it to a church that wants to plug into the local community, understand the local community and serve the local community. We’ve found it really helpful.” Revd Naomi Oates

Tonbridge Road and Bearsted Methodist Churches used Growing Good as their Lent course, focusing on local presence and community connection. Inspired, they launched “The Drop In” afterschool club for local students, fostering new relationships and outreach. Revd Naomi Oates partnered with a local school chaplain to shape the program, which now runs twice weekly. The course also sparked renewed interest in a community litter pick, drawing volunteers from ages four to 80. These initiatives have helped the church look outward, strengthening ties with the community and demonstrating vibrant life beyond Sunday worship.

Sign up to Growing Good for free today for resources, including:

1. Themed resources with session guides, activities, prayers and promotional materials.
Everything you need to get your church involved through Presence; Perseverance; Hospitality; Adaptability; Justice and Participation.
2. Training Hub You don’t need to be a church leader or trained facilitator to run the course. Get your full introduction to running Growing Good, tips for preparing and leading the sessions, and a video introduction for your group members featuring Bishop Lynne Cullens.
3. Engaging videos You’ll find videos for each of the seven sessions, including stories from local churches and insights from research.
4. Practical ideas that you can action straight away.

New for winter 2025: Justice

When we think about justice, we often picture fairness – ensuring equal opportunities and righting wrongs.
But God’s justice is deeper. It’s a justice that lifts up the oppressed, welcomes the outcast, and transforms communities. A justice that saves, heals and restores.
In a new Growing Good session we help your church work through what a just society looks like to you, how you can listen, build relationships and make that vision a reality.

Sign up to Growing Good for free today for access to the new Justice session