Introduction

The inner city is where Christian mission in Britain has been at its most creative over the past two centuries. Many new expressions of church life, evangelism and social action were pioneered here.

People have come to faith in Jesus Christ, communities have been renewed and signs of God's kingdom of justice and peace have been evident.

But church life in many inner city communities is weak. Why?

• Because the social and spiritual needs in the inner city are enormous
  
• Because the inner city is changing and many churches struggle to adapt
  
• Because Christians have steadily moved to the suburbs and continue to do so
  
• Because inappropriate models of church planting are sometimes used in the inner city
  

Urban Expression has since 1997 deployed a number of church planting teams in East London, Manchester and Glasgow, from which new churches are gradually developing.

In 2004, in response to several requests, Urban Expression Associates was formed as a network of church planters and others involved in urban mission who share our core values and want to participate in a learning community.

Child Protection Policy

Urban Expression regards child protection and good working practice as a priority. In the interests of the safety and well being of all children and young people, it has developed and operates a formal child protection policy, which is registered with the Churches’ Child Protection Advisory Service (policy number 07/679).

The agency is committed to ensuring that everyone working with children or young people:

● has undergone a Criminal Records Bureau check at enhanced level,

● is adequately trained and supervised,

● understands and follows the agency’s child protection policy.

The child protection policy may be viewed and/or a copy obtained from the agency on application to Urban Expression: PO Box 35238, London E1 0YZ.

As part of this agency’s commitment to children and young people it has appointed Jim Kilpin as Child Protection Co-ordinator and Stuart Murray Williams as Deputy Child Protection Co-ordinator.

Should the agency have any child protection concerns, it will seek the advice of the Churches’ Child Protection Advisory Service and if appropriate contact the statutory authorities.

Urban Expression

• Recognises that child protection is everyone’s responsibility.

• Is committed to supporting parents and families.

• Recognises the unique and individual worth of each child.

• Is committed to nurturing, protecting and safeguarding children and young people.

• Exercises care in the appointment of all those working with children and young people in the church, working to ‘Safe from Harm’ principles.

• Is committed to following statutory and specialist guidelines in working with children and young people.

• Seeks to support all those affected by abuse.

• Is committed to supporting, training and resourcing those who work with children and young people and provide regular supervision.

• Will review its child protection policy annually and register it with CCPAS.

If you have any concerns for a child or in relation to any child protection matter then please contact one of the Child Protection Co-ordinators.

Core Convictions

The core convictions of Urban Expression are the key to how we operate: everything springs from our core convictions.

Please look around this section for a real understanding of who we are.

Get Involved

There are various ways of getting involved with Urban Expression.

• You can apply to join an existing team or help to form a new team.
• You can receive newsletters and pray for our work.
• You can offer financial support to this initiative.

Find out more...

Offer Financial Support

Urban Expression is a very low-cost mission agency. We are working in areas that have very limited financial resources and we do all we can to operate in appropriate ways for these contexts.

We do not provide funding for our church planting teams, which are self-financing. Members of the teams share resources together, find various ways of obtaining support and live simply.

But we do need some financial support to enable us to maintain and develop our work. Our expenditure covers the following areas:

* Producing brochures and other material.
* Promoting Urban Expression at various events.
* Underwriting new initiatives.
* Subsidising training for team members.

We have valued the support of a number of Trusts over the past few years, but many Trusts prefer not to provide ongoing support for existing agencies so that they can fund new initiatives. We are, therefore, looking for regular support from those who believe in what we are doing and can offer ongoing funding.

Our annual budget for general expenditure at present is only about £12,000. A hundred supporters giving £10 per month would supply all we need. Is this something you might consider?

In 2007 the Baptist Union of Great Britain awarded us a grant to enable us to employ Jim & Juliet Kilpin as Urban Expression co-ordinators. We are very grateful for this and hope this grant will be available again in future years.

We are also hoping to develop links with partner churches in areas of the country with greater financial resources, offering in return opportunities for their members to participate short-term in urban church planting contexts. Would your church be interested in this?

If you (or your church) may be interested in offering financial support – either a single gift or regular support – please contact us with your details and we will be in touch.

Come to an Open day

From time to time we hold Open Days - opportunities for anyone interested in Urban Expression to join us for a day.

Open Days may include:

1. An urban trail - a guided walk, exploring an area with a rich history of urban Christianity.
2. An opportunity to meet team members and local Christians, and to learn about the work of Urban Expression.
3. A shared meal in a local curry house or other restaurant.
4. A prayer walk in one of the communities where a new church is being planted or in a community where a team may soon be deployed.
5. An opportunity to participate in a team activity, such as the sports initiative in the summer.

Exploring Partnership

Introduction

Urban Expression is in the business of pioneer church planting and recruiting church planting teams, but there are situations where we might also offer support and an accountable framework for other inner-city church planters.

We have an interview process for new applicants who want to join teams but we will use the following process for incorporating those who are already involved in inner-city church planting.

The Process

1. An approach for some form of partnership might made be to various members of Urban Expression by individuals or organisations already engaged in church planting. Informal conversations should explore the extent to which there are shared values and the viability of working together, and whether incorporation into Urban Expression or some other form of partnership is under discussion.

2. If the interest in incorporation or partnership continues, the regional steering group and the board of trustees should be informed and this situation can be considered at the next meeting of the trustees or regional steering group. In the meantime further conversations can take place.

3. Anyone interested in partnership should be encouraged to:
(a) Read and reflect on the core convictions of Urban Expression.
(b) Discuss their responses to these convictions with members of Urban Expression.
(c) Meet informally with one or more of the team leaders in the appropriate region.
(d) Visit one or more meetings of Urban Expression teams/churches – by agreement with team leaders.
(e) Supply information about their own work and invite members of Urban Expression to visit this.
(f) Clarify what they hope Urban Expression can offer to them.

4. If these steps do not discourage further interest, the next stage would be to arrange a formal discussion involving at least two members of the regional steering group and/or board of trustees and two team leaders. At this meeting the option of partnership can be explored, which might mean either formal incorporation into Urban Expression or some form of partnership or friendship link.

5. The process should last not less than six months to enable both parties to get to know each other reasonably well. Any agreement reached should be subject to review after twelve months.

Glasgow steering group

The work of Urban Expression (Glasgow) is guided by a regional steering group. The members of this group are:

1. Peter Neilson (chair)
2. Linda Dunnett
3. Andy Scarcliffe
4. Neil Young

Peter Neilson is the Glasgow representative on the Urban Expression board of trustees.

Good Practice Guide

Introduction

Urban Expression began in 1997 and for several years operated quite informally and with a minimum of documentation. Our activities were limited geographically and in scope, and relationships between all involved were deep and strong. Our core values provide the foundations on which decisions and policies have been based.

Since 2004, however, the range of activities and number of people involved has grown:

• 2004: Urban Expression Associates
• 2005: Crucible course
• 2006: Manchester and Glasgow teams

The core values remain foundational, as do relational ways of operating, but we can no longer take for granted the impact of the values or the strength of relationships. As our activities diversify and more people become involved we need to reflect on who we are, what we have learned and how we intend to operate.

There is some reluctance to take this step, which signals transition from an organic to more organisation phase. There is a sense of loss as well as gain in the growth we have experienced. There are dangers of institutional inertia replacing the flexibility of being a movement. But there are dangers in not doing this that are at least as great: loss of vision, diminished impact, assumptions that are not justified, strained relationships, uneven and inequitable ways of operating in different contexts and loss of core identity.

This document sets out our understanding of ‘good practice’, based on experience since 1997. It is not intended as the final word on any subject (nor are we claiming that we have always lived up to our ideals) but as a working document to be updated as experience requires.

Core values

Urban Expression is not a ‘purpose-driven’ but ‘values-guided’ mission agency. We are purposeful but we choose not to be ‘driven’ either by external expectations or by internal pressure to succeed. We began during a period of reflection in church planting circles as it became clear both that unrealistic expectations for planting churches during the 1990s were a liability and that much more attention needed to be given to ‘what kind’ of church was planted as well as ‘how many’.

Our core values, first developed in 1997 and revised substantially once since then, consist of 21 statements of conviction and 7 commitments. They express the heart of who we are and why we do what we do. They remain subject to revision but are deeply held by those who have been involved in Urban Expression since its inception. It is these care values that have held together church planting teams that have developed different modes of working and through whom different expressions of church are emerging. And it is these core values that have attracted to us new team members and Associates.

As Urban Expression grows and diversifies we intend to ensure that these core values remain central and influential. Good practice in this area means:

• We will investigate the attitude towards our core values of anyone applying to join an Urban Expression team, accepting only those who can enthusiastically affirm the values and commitments.
• We will investigate the attitude towards our core values of anyone we invite to become an Urban Expression trustee or join a regional steering group, endorsing only those who can enthusiastically affirm the values and commitments.
• We will investigate the attitude towards our core values of anyone applying to become an Urban Expression Associate, welcoming only those who can enthusiastically affirm the values and commitments.
• We will communicate our core values clearly to those who apply to study on the Crucible course, encouraging them to explore their implications for their own work and ministry.
• We will communicate our core values clearly on the Urban Expression website and in brochures, newsletters and any other material we produce.
• We will develop internal processes to continue reflecting on the core values so that these are not taken for granted but are indwelt and influential in all we do. These processes include informal conversations, discussion at meetings and the development of a daily liturgy around these core values.
• We will build in periodic reviews of the core values in order to reflect on their impact on Urban Expression and to revise them in light of experience.

Recruitment

One of the core activities of Urban Expression as a mission agency is the recruitment of teams to plant churches in under-churched areas. We recruit through personal contacts, the distribution of promotional literature and a website that is largely open-access. We regard ourselves as an ‘anti-hype’ mission agency that does not promise success or offer inducements to potential recruits. We invite recruits prepared to make sacrifices and to work in contexts where ‘success’ is hard to define or achieve.

The recruitment process includes personal conversations; the provision of Open Days to tell our story and explain how we operate; an application form; taking up references; and an interview/discernment meeting. Trustees or members of regional steering groups are normally involved in the interview/discernment meeting alongside existing team leaders and those working for Urban Expression.

Potential team members are asked to make an initial commitment of three years. Potential team leaders are expected to regard this period as a minimum commitment that is likely to lead on to long-term involvement. Although the recruitment process includes a formal interview, we prefer to regard this as a mutual discernment meeting with applicants and Urban Expression jointly exploring whether working together is appropriate.

Good practice in this area means:

• We will not idealise Urban Expression or glamorise urban church planting but give applicants an honest account of our activities and the prospects of church planting in inner-city communities.
• We will read carefully and use responsibly all information provided by those who apply and those who provide references for them.
• We will not short-cut the application process in situations where we have personal knowledge of the applicants.
• We will ensure that applicants are clear about what Urban Expression can and cannot offer by way of pastoral and financial support.
• We will act responsibly throughout the application process and will not accept applicants about whose suitability we have significant doubts.
• We will maintain confidentiality throughout the application process and will communicate clearly and promptly with all involved in this process.
• We will operate with a consistent application policy and process in all areas where we are recruiting team members.

Deployment

A second core activity of Urban Expression is the deployment of church planting teams in appropriate locations. The choice of location depends on several factors and requires careful research before teams are deployed, including adequate consultation with existing churches in areas under consideration. Team leaders (and where possible team members) will be involved in the choice of location alongside those who work for Urban Expression and the regional steering group.

Our primary commitment is to inner-city communities and especially to areas of urban deprivation and poverty. We are not interested in planting churches in communities with sufficient existing churches. We are concerned to deploy teams in ‘under-churched’ areas (we use this term in preference to ‘unchurched’ for reasons of ecumenical sensitivity, but we recognise that some inner-city areas are effectively without church presence).

Experience has also taught us the value of deploying teams in close proximity to other teams for mutual support. Although there may be exceptions to this practice, wherever feasible we prefer either to deploy more than one team in the vicinity or to deploy new teams near existing teams.

We choose to deploy relatively small teams (no more than 10 people) in order to limit the likelihood of teams imposing their culture and experience of church on the churches they are planting. We acknowledge that ‘planting in weakness’ is riskier and will usually mean the progress of the team is slower than with a larger team, but we are committed to this as an Incarnational approach that may result in the development of indigenous churches.

Good practice in this area means:

• We will carry out thorough research into possible areas for deploying teams prior to their deployment.
• We will consult with existing local churches and other Christian agencies with an interest in such areas and heed their counsel.
• We will invite potential team leaders to be fully involved in decisions regarding the deployment of their team.
• We will refrain from deploying teams that are large enough that they jeopardise our grass roots strategy and the emergence of indigenous churches.
• We will evaluate carefully and cross-reference the diverse factors that we have identified as critical for the decision about where to deploy teams.

Support and training

Urban Expression does not have extensive resources of personnel, time or finance. But we recognise our responsibility to offer adequate training (both induction and ongoing), accountability and pastoral support to the teams we deploy.

Training has been the weakest area of our work in the early years but the development of the Crucible course and links with the School of Urban Mission offer fresh opportunities for both induction and ongoing training. We need to establish a culture of training so that team members recognise the need for training at all stages in their participation in the church planting process.

Pastoral support and accountability has been offered through a number of strategies: bi-monthly meetings of team leaders for story-telling, news-sharing, theological reflection and prayer; one-to-one meetings in alternate months for each team leader with someone working for Urban Expression; annual day retreats (since 2004 with Urban Expression Associates); and the availability of someone outside Urban Expression with whom team members can speak in confidence. Team leaders have been regarded as responsible for the support of their team members.

In practice, much informal support has been offered and received outside this formal structure; and the one-to-one meetings with team leaders have diminished in frequency over time.

Good practice in this area means:

• We will be responsible (through the regional steering groups) for ensuring an appropriate support and accountability structure for the teams deployed in each region.
• We will provide regular ongoing support for team leaders and ensure that they are providing such support for their team members.
• We will identify someone outside Urban Expression with the experience to act as an external point of reference for any team member needing this and we will make sure all team members know they have access to this person.
• We will encourage all new team members to embark on induction training using appropriate links with existing courses.
• We will encourage all existing team members to participate in ongoing training (both generalised and specialised).
• We will look to provide regular opportunities for theological reflection and in-house training.

Mission and church

Urban Expression is a mission agency and has no intention of becoming an institution or a new mini-denomination. We are interested in planting new churches, not providing an ongoing framework for the churches that have been planted. If we are drawn into the latter activity we recognise that we will soon allow maintenance to marginalise mission.

There is no easy way to determine when a church planting team has developed into the core of a new church; nor when the emerging church is ready to stand on its own feet and move out from under the auspices of Urban Expression. But both transitions are crucial and must be identified in each team/church context. If we are slow to do this or reluctant to relinquish control we jeopardise the health of the churches we are planting.

Churches planted by Urban Expression teams are free to decide with whom to associate for ongoing support and relationship. Historically there have been very strong links with the Baptist Union of Great Britain but not all the teams have had this connection. Urban Expression is not a Baptist mission agency, nor do we assume that only Baptist churches will be planted under our auspices.

Good practice in this area means:

• We will not interfere in the activities of the churches our teams plant or expect these churches to feel accountable to Urban Expression.
• We will encourage teams to watch out for the transition from team to church core group and make adjustments accordingly.
• We will expect emerging churches at an appropriate stage to become independent of Urban Expression (although we hope friendship links will continue) and build links with a denomination or a network of churches.
• We will invite team leaders and team members still involved in such emerging churches to become Urban Expression Associates or to consider planting another church.
• We will concentrate our energies on recruiting and deploying further teams rather than overseeing the churches that are planted.

Governance

Urban Expression is a charitable trust with a board of trustees who are legally responsible for our activities. This board of trustees is comprised of representatives from the regional steering groups plus additional members. The regional steering groups are responsible for overseeing the recruitment and deployment of teams in their region and monitoring and supporting the ongoing work of these teams.

Because of our commitment to grass-roots mission, our policy is to include a current team leader on each of the regional steering groups and another team leader on the board of trustees.

Urban Expression is not an employer. The teams deployed are self-funding and there are no members of staff on the Urban Expression payroll. However, Urban Expression does raise funds in order to pay fees and expenses to those who work on our behalf. We do not engage in fund-raising for team members.

Good practice in this area means:

• We will keep the trustees and regional steering groups appraised of developments and of any issues that require their involvement.
• We will facilitate a good flow of information among the regional steering groups and between the regional steering groups and the trustees.
• We will ensure that teams are appropriately represented on the board of trustees and the regional steering groups.
• We will continue to raise funds for central costs but will make it clear to those we recruit that we are not responsible for their funding.
• We will ensure that regional steering groups operate in consultation with each other and apply the same principles in the various regions, albeit applying these flexibly.

Partnership

Urban Expression values the support of friends and prayer partners, with whom we share news via regular newsletters. Individual team members may also have a network of such supporters; and we encourage them to share with them also news of the other activities of Urban Expression. We also maintain a fairly extensive website with updated news and other information.

Although our primary mandate is to recruit and deploy church planting teams, we realise that urban mission is messy and that situations may arise where it is appropriate to enter into partnerships with existing church planting initiatives. We have developed a process for considering such partnerships (see the ‘Exploring Partnerships’ paper).

We are hoping also to develop partnerships of a different kind with churches outside the inner city – partnerships for mutual learning and encouragement, providing opportunities to share with others the challenge of inner-city church planting and to encourage church members to consider joining church planting teams.

Yet another form of partnership is with the network of people who have asked to become Urban Expression Associates. We provide a monthly email update to all Associates (and team members), sharing news and information and encouraging theological reflection and the pooling of ideas and resources. We also organise an annual Associates’ Day, which has training and networking components. Further activities may also develop, some of which may also include those who have completed the Crucible course. And the Urban Expression website offers further opportunities for networking among Associates.

Good practice in this area means:

• We will speak and write honestly about Urban Expression on our website and in any communication with partners and supporters.
• We will operate in accordance with the ‘Exploring Partnership’ guidelines in any conversation about possible partnerships with other church planting initiatives.
• We will seek to ensure that any partnerships with churches outside the inner city are for mutual benefit and do not model paternalism.
• We will encourage realistic expectations among Associates as to the ways in which Urban Expression can act as a resource to them and will try to catalyse the development of a self-sustaining learning network.

Governance structure

Structure and remit

1. From September 2005 Urban Expression will be governed by a two-tier structure comprising:
(a) Regional steering groups comprised of a maximum of two trustees and as many other members as is deemed useful.
(b) A board of trustees, some (but not all) of whom are also members of regional steering groups.

2. Although it will share many of these responsibilities with regional steering groups, the board of trustees is ultimately responsible for:
(a) Guardianship – safeguarding the values and ethos of Urban Expression as new people become involved and new initiatives develop.
(b) Legal responsibility for Urban Expression as a charitable trust.
(c) Overseeing the profile, publicity and promotion of Urban Expression.
(d) Fundraising for Urban Expression as a whole and providing a treasurer.
(e) Overseeing training initiatives within Urban Expression.
(f) Networking with other agencies.
(g) Overseeing the development of Urban Expression Associates.
(h) Developing the website.

3. Regional steering groups are responsible for:
(a) Promoting Urban Expression and raising its profile in and beyond their region.
(b) Recruiting new teams and further team members.
(c) Strategic decisions about deploying new teams.
(d) Fundraising within their region and for regional initiatives (including funding trustees’ travel to the national group).
(e) Providing pastoral support, training and accountability for teams in their region.
(f) Networking with other agencies in and beyond their region.
(g) Running open days.
(h) Developing and maintaining their section of the website.

Procedures

1. Regional steering groups are responsible for nominating two of their members as trustees of Urban Expression (and nominating any successors as necessary).

2. Additional trustees (who are not members of the regional steering groups) will be nominated by the board of trustees in consultation with the regional groups.

3. If additional regional steering groups are proposed to oversee work in new regions, these will be formed by agreement with the board of trustees and of existing regional steering groups. New regional steering groups will be invited to nominate two of their members as trustees of Urban Expression.

4. The board of trustees will normally meet twice a year (venues to be agreed). The regional steering groups will decide how often they wish meet.

5. Minutes of the board of trustees and of regional steering groups will be circulated to all other groups, with an open invitation to comment or ask questions.

6. We will review (and if necessary amend) this governance structure in September 2007.

Personnel

1. The board of trustees will comprise: two representatives from the London steering group (Kathryn Copsey and Martin Thomas), two representatives from Manchester (to be confirmed), two representatives from Glasgow (David Gordon and Martin Johnstone), a grass-roots representative (Phil Warburton) and two other trustees (Andrew Grinnell and Chris Horton).

2. The London regional group will comprise Pat Took (chair), Karen Stallard, Mark Perrott, David Shosanya, Kathryn Copsey (trustee) and Martin Thomas (trustee).

3. The Glasgow regional steering group will comprise David Gordon, Martin Johnstone, Peter Neilson, Rachel Smillie, Neil Young and Linda Dunnett.

4. The Manchester regional steering group will comprise two trustees and additional members.

5. Juliet Kilpin and Stuart Murray Williams (and any further consultants) can be invited to attend the meetings of any of these groups.

Values

Urban Expression is a values-based mission agency. Our expectation is that trustees and members of regional steering groups will be wholeheartedly committed to the core values and commitments of Urban Expression.

We are wary of Urban Expression becoming more of an institution than a movement. While we recognise the need for increasing structure to facilitate continued growth and development, we intend that this will remain lightweight, decentralised, energised by grass-roots perspectives and mutually accountable.

London steering group

The work of Urban Expression (London) is overseen by a regional steering group. This group consists of:

1. Kathryn Copsey
2. Steve Calder
3. Simon Jones
4. David Shosanya
5. Phyllis Manners

Kathryn Copsey is the London representative on the Urban Expression board of trustees.

Manchester steering group

The work of Urban Expression (Manchester) is guided by a regional steering group.

The members of this group are:

Glen Marshall (chair)
Trevor Hutton (secretary)
George Carter
Derek Purnell
Angie Tunstall
Louise Kenyon

Derek Purnell and Trevor Hutton are the Manchester representatives on the Urban Expression board of trustees.

Teams & Churches

The aim of each Urban Expression team is to plant a new church in the community where the team is operating. Teams do this by living in the area, learning how the community operates, praying for it, getting to know local people, building friendships, serving the local community, discovering what God is doing there, developing appropriate mission strategies and establishing a community of faith.

The emphasis in this church planting process is on listening to the community, thinking creatively about what church might look like in that community, searching for ways to be authentic and relevant, empowering local people to shape the church that emerges. This is a slower way of planting churches than imposing a ready-made model of church or using the popular church planting method of starting a "daughter" church with a larger group from a "mother" church. But we are committed to this process as a more sustainable and more sensitive approach. We want to plant well rather than fast.

It is difficult to know when a team becomes a church. There is a gradual transition as local people come to faith and take responsibility for the church. Each team is responsible for managing this transition. For example:

1. In Shadwell, the team refused to name the church they were planting, waiting instead for local people to name it. After four years, the Cable Street Community Church decided to join the London Baptist Association.
2. In Wapping, the team decided quite early on to become established as a local church and joined the London Baptist Association as Wapping Community Baptist Church.

Because of the strong connections between Urban Expression and the London Baptist Association, it is likely that some churches planted by the East London teams will become members of this Association and of the Baptist Union of Great Britain. But this is a decision that rests with each church. In Glasgow the first team is associated with the Scottish Network of Churches, and one of our East London teams is linked with the Salvation Army.

Trustees

As a charitable trust Urban Expression is legally the responsibility of a group of trustees, who are currently:

1. Kathryn Copsey
2. Martin Thomas
3. Andrew Grinnell
4. Chris Horton (treasurer)
5. Phil Warburton
6. Derek Purnell
7. Martin Johnstone
8. Peter Neilson
9. Trevor Hutton

Open Day Reports

The Open Day on 26th February 2005 went really well.

Six people came along, with a range of interests. Some were considering moving in and getting involved in a church planting situation in the inner-city. Some were already involved in an urban church situation but came looking to connect with others who understood the complexities of doing so in such an environment. And others came simply wanting to hear stories from those who are seeking to be church in a way that is relevant in our contemporary culture.

The Open Day on 25th June 2005 went very well.

Five people attended, some with a view to possibly joining Urban Expression in the future, some just interested in new ways of being church. One guest is hoping to be part of Urban Expression in Glasgow and was interested to learn from established teams. We walked around the area of Plaistow that is home to Harvest Rock Community Church and talked over some challenging questions. We agreed that Urban Expression doesn’t have all the answers, but is exploring them and learning as it grows.

If you would find it helpful to connect with us, then please come along to our next Open Day.