44: Hidden Treasures

Stories of church for adults with learning disabilities are an important reminder that fresh expressions of Church continue to grow in surprising places, including vulnerable groups within our society.

Claire Dalpra, the author of this issue, was astonished to find when chatting to her colleagues in The Sheffield Centre, that almost everyone had a family, friend or work connection to someone with learning disabilities. This is perhaps not surprising when you read that Mencap estimate 1.5 million members of the UK population have learning disabilities.

She admits: 'Within the many and varied types of mission context in which fresh expressions are being planted, I had identified the mission context as important but assumed it would be an isolated and obscure area of research. How wrong I was.'

In this issue Claire Dalpra tells two stories of such churches: Fenland Community Church in March, Cambridgeshire and Focus Service in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. Both are on an intentional journey towards ecclesial maturity, but what particular opportunities and challenges do they face along the way? And do their experiences have anything to say to others involved with fresh expressions of church?

How have both examples been able to fund their work for over a decade despite a membership who are unable to give financially? And do these examples match up to our existing definitions of what is church, or do they challenge them?