Become A Follow-up Church

Thank you for your interest in how your church can prepare to support those who decide to follow Jesus during Festival Teesside! The local church is at the heart of what Festival Teesside is all about as we all work together to share the Gospel across our region — we can’t do this without your help.

Over the coming months, there will be regular opportunities to get involved in events that will help you and your church plan your follow-up response to Festival Teesside. This includes connecting with the follow-up team, getting involved in personal evangelism training, having access to ongoing support, as well as a host of other things that happen post-festival to ensure those who have made decisions are discipled.

Continue reading to learn more and feel free to contact our team if you have any questions.

Pre-Festival

december 2023 — june 2024

  • This will be the person who receives all the decisions post-festival so that all contact information is distributed securely. They will need to have a church email address.  They will need to either be solely responsible for contacting people who have made decisions or coordinate a team of volunteers to call and email those who have.  They will need to be free and available throughout the week after the festival, 10-14 June 2024. 

    Once you have someone in mind, you will need to pass their contact information on to the festival team by emailing justin.bloomfield@palau.org. 

  • People’s privacy is of extreme value throughout the process and to ensure we protect their privacy we have a robust GDPR process in place. You need to please review and sign the follow-up data share agreement before the festival.

    This will enable us to comply with best practices and relevant legislation when we share the details of those responding to the Gospel with you after the festival. It is also an opportunity for you as a church to review any needed data protection policies and procedures with plenty of time to spare before the festival. 

    We will sadly not be able to share any decision cards with you if we haven’t received the signed copy of the agreement before the festival. 

  • Let’s begin the follow-up process in prayer and worship together. Join us on 27 April at 7 pm at Stockton Globe.

  • We suggest that you do this well in advance to be ahead of summer activities. To pre-register your course with Alpha please visit www.run.alpha.org.uk ahead of the festival and advertise it on your website (Alpha will do the same). 

    The Alpha course will not only serve those who made a commitment at the festival, but it will also help those who were left with questions, as well as those locally who are looking for churches and courses near them. 

    If you have any questions about this, Marie from the Alpha UK team is supporting the festival, and you can contact her directly at marie.aitken@alpha.org .

    Please note that you are welcome to choose an alternative discipleship route to Alpha if that works better in your context. However, we have found Alpha to be a great first step after the festival and would recommend joining in with the other churches participating in a united effort across Teesside. 

  • Create a fun-filled summer programme so that you can stay connected with those who have made a decision during the festival. Explore ideas here.

  • Throughout the week of May 13th, the festival team will host training evenings across Teesside to equip those who attend with practical evangelism skills so that they can share their faith with confidence. These nights are key. Firstly, it will help your congregation to intentionally engage with friends and family, offering personal invitations to the festival. But more importantly, these are skills for the lifelong practice of evangelism.   

    The festival team will provide you with media and printed assets to advertise the training within your churches, but it would be appreciated if you could promote these events and signpost people to sign up. 

  • Throughout the festival, there will be a group of volunteers called Festival Friends. They will be responsible for standing alongside those who have made a decision, praying with them, and collecting their contact details for follow-up.

    Only those who have attended the training can take on this role at the festival as these moments need to be handled with care from a data protection and safe-guarding perspective. More information will follow on how to book the training. 

Post-Festival

june 2024 - September 2024

  • The festival team will allocate the people who have made decisions to a church using their postcodes. A secure list of names and contact details will be sent to your follow-up point person by Wednesday, 12 June.

  • We recommend that your follow-up point person prioritises the next few days to personally contact those who have been assigned to your church. It is important to capitalise on the window of interest and follow-up as quickly as possible with an invitation to church that coming Sunday. 

    Below are two basic contact templates to use for a phone call and email that you can personalise with church information and relevant dates.   

    These templates are only a guide and may be helpful to volunteers who have less experience with contacting.  

    PHONE CALL TEMPLATE  

    Hi [Name], my name is [Your Name] and I am calling from [Church Name].  

    At the weekend you attended Festival Teesside and gave a member of the team your contact information to follow up.  

    I would love to invite you to come to our service at [Location Here] at [Time Here] this Sunday if you are free. 

    We are also hosting a [Insert Summer Activity Here) on [Date Here] at [Location Here]. I would love to invite you to come. 

    I hope to see you this or next Sunday, just let the welcome team know it’s your first time and they will direct you in.  

     

    EMAIL TEMPLATE

    Hi [Name],

    My name is [Your Name] from [Church Name].  

    I hope you enjoyed your time at Festival Teesside this weekend.  

    Thank you for passing on your contact information for follow-up. I would love to invite you to come to our service at [Location Here] at [Time Here] this Sunday if you are free.  

    We are also hosting a [Insert Summer Activity Here) on [Date Here] at [Location Here]. I would love to invite you to come.  

    If you have any questions or would like to talk do email me back and we can arrange a time to chat. I will be back in touch in the next couple of weeks with some more dates we have coming up at [Your Church Name] I would like to invite you to, including Alpha starting on [Date Here] at [Location Here].  

    All the best ,

    [ Your Name]

  • Get ready to welcome new people into your community. There are three more Sundays in June following the festival weekend. These are the services that people curious about faith, or who made a decision over the festival weekend, are likely to visit and we recommend these services are prepared with a new-to-church person in mind. Explore ideas to implement at the services here.

  • Your summer activities have been pre-planned, you have already added the dates to your website and social media channels and printed out the invitations. Now is the time to keep the momentum going and encourage your congregation to invite friends, family, and people from your churches neighbouring community. These activities are great ways to stay connected with those who have made decisions during the festival.  

    Do not forget to advertise the upcoming Alpha course at every event you host. Ensure that your Alpha invites are printed ahead of time.  

  • Utilise the two Sundays before the first week of Alpha to highlight local stories of positive experiences from previous courses. Testimonies given from the front of the church are always engaging. This is also a moment for the Evangelism Training that your congregation went through earlier in the year to come into play. Potentially recap some of the key points from the front and provide everyone with invitations encouraging them to invite friends and family. 

    Below are a few more things to consider in preparation for Alpha.

    Team training 

    Gather your volunteers during these two weeks before launch to walk through the best practices for hosting small group discussions and what to expect during the course.  

    Pray 

    Gather with your team to pray and mobilise your congregation to also pray.  

    Get your resources ready 

    You should have already registered your course earlier in the year, so now is the time to log back into your Alpha account and download all the upcoming sessions ahead of time.  

    Get in touch  

    If you need any further support or would like Alpha UK to facilitate any online or in-person training for your Church contact Marie at marie.aitken@alpha.org  

  • All the Festival Teesside follow-up churches are coordinating their efforts to launch Alpha courses during the same week. You may be running on different days and at various times, but a coordinated launch will benefit the region maximising the opportunity for people to connect with local churches.  

New to church Sunday services

Welcome newcomers to your church during and after the festival with the following suggestions.

  • The welcome team

    Consider doubling your greeting team to ensure that someone’s first impression is positive, guests are easily guided inside, and they can easily locate someone if they have questions.

  • New signs

    Consider new signs for newcomers. This doesn’t have to be a large expense; a simple roller banner that says, ‘Welcome to [Church Name]’ will do.

  • Worship

    Be mindful that those who are new to church might not be used to public worship or the songs. Make sure the words are either available via the screens or on your order of service.   

  • Service content  

    Consider mentioning the festival to make newcomers feel comfortable. Another idea is to ask someone who attended to share a story or their highlight from the festival season.

  • Share the gospel 

    There is no greater message than the message of Jesus. This is an opportunity to reiterate the very message that has led newcomers to you. Plan for a time of response at the end of service.   

  • Provide Next Steps  

    Consider having physical invitations printed to give to those who are new to church with details about upcoming activities, events, Alpha, and ways to engage in church life.   

  • Invite Them Back

    It might sound crazy but do make it clear that they are welcome to return to your church the following Sunday. Everyone loves to receive an invitation.

Summer Activities

Stay connected to newcomers with these suggested activities over the summer.   

  • Family Fun Day 

    Host a family fun day at your church. Activities could include inflatables, BBQ, lawn games, face paintings and more!

  • Sports Day 

    Have fun and host a nostalgic sports day complete with egg and spoon races, tug of war, and the three-legged race!  

  • Movie Night 

    This could be family-themed or great for young adults. Host within your building if you have space, or outside. Don’t forget the popcorn!  

  • Welcome Party

    Consider hosting a catered gathering at your church one evening where you share from the front a little about who you are and what you do.  

  • Youth Socials 

    Encourage your youth team to set some dates for the young people who connected with you through the festival.  

  • Summer Nights

    You may choose to do all of these ideas as a summer series of weekly gatherings throughout August. Summer never looked so good!  

Upcoming Dates

Prayer & Worship Event

27 April | 7pm | Stockton Globe  

Friendship Evangelism Training

13-17 May | Time | Location

Festival Friends Training

3 June | Time | Location

Festival Teesside 2024

8-9 June | Time | Location

Next steps

We hope you find this strategy helpful and it provides you with a clear timeline of events. The next step is to establish exactly what you wish to include in your follow-up process and get planning! 

Below are the points people to contact.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss your follow-up plan with a member of the festival team, contact Justin Bloomfield. Once you have appointed your follow-up person, please email Justin at justin.bloomfield@palau.org.

For all Alpha support, contact marie.aitken@alpha.org.