Stepping up to end youth unemployment Ascend

by Catherine Wiffen

Cat has been in Sheffield since 2005, a wannabe Northerner and all round lover of the Steel City. Part of the church family at All Saints Totley, mum to 4, wife to Sam and co-waffler on the Plumbline Podcast.

At Ascend, we are on a mission to end youth unemployment in Sheffield. We work with local employers and Christian mentors to create a support network around each young adult on our programme. Since the last edition of Arise! magazine went out, Ascend has reached a huge milestone. A milestone that those of us on the team only dared to whisper, and even then, only to one another. Our whispers finally changed into shouts of joy as we celebrated our first cohort of young adults in Sheffield moving from unemployment into work. We took them for a slap-up meal of burgers and chips (their choice) and created a space to be able to congratulate them on all they have accomplished. We gave them certificates, affirming three strengths that we had noticed about each of them during their time with us, and we spent some time reflecting on their Ascend journey – think ups and downs and you’ve got it!

What sets us apart from other employability schemes is that we start with a solid foundation; every young adult is made in the image of God, all are worthy of dignity, there is no situation beyond help –even in the deepest pits we find our Maker, and all the world and everything in it is His. Because of this, when we meet our young adults, we’re ready to hear their stories, we’re interested in their dreams, and we remind them that they don’t just need to fall back on ‘retail’ as an answer because that passes the test in the Job Centre. We look to match our young adults with employers, to open their minds to what could be, encouraging them that doing something is always better than doing nothing.

They start by doing a twoweek work trial with us and join some employment training with our team. A structured, robust and – most importantly –holistic approach is taken to training. They are gaining valuable skills such as CV writing and interview technique as well as exploring who they are and what they’re made for. One of our young adults once said to me: ‘I’ve never heard the word introvert, now I understand why I am like I am’. These sessions are truly life-giving and transformative.

We also pair each Ascender with a Christian mentor, who meets regularly with them, providing a safe and open space to listen and reflect. Mentors may also help mediate with employers if issues come up in the workplace, and some invite their mentee into other community activities. One young adult who finished his placement over a year ago still plays football with his mentor’s church group every week! It’s so rewarding to work closely with a young adult like this. We’re always looking for more volunteer mentors: we offer full training and support to help you feel confident as a mentor. Please get in touch (details at the end of the article) if you’d like to find out more.

At its heart, Ascend wants to extend to young adults in Sheffield the common graces that God gives us. In the majority of cases, our young adults have experienced the collateral damage of our broken world. We believe that God always brings order out of chaos and one of the ways we see that manifested is through the gift of work. As Adam and Eve were given the garden to tend, we see that that is as a direct result of God bringing it to creation through his ordering of the chaos we read about in Genesis 1. Work is a good and gracious gift.

Some of the funding for Ascend comes from Sheffield City Council and other secular charities, but we’d really love to grow it to a point where it can be completely funded by Christians who support the entire vision of Ascend. Already, some churches and individuals in Sheffield have committed to giving regularly to support the work of Ascend. Could you and your church add Ascend to the list of local causes you support?

Before we left our celebration with our first cohort, we gave each of them the opportunity to reflect on who they were before Ascend and who they are now. The common theme overwhelmingly was that they found acceptance and a community of people invested in their well being. For nearly all of them, this was a first-time experience. Of course, our longing for community and acceptance points to the reason God instituted the Church; it is amongst his people we will come to fully know and be known. The last words our young adults heard from the Ascend team were, ‘Consider Jesus’. We pray expectantly that God will use Ascend to grow his Kingdom. These are our new whispers: let’s hope one day they will turn to shouts of joy too.

If you’re interested in partnering with Ascend, you can do so in three ways: praying with us, mentoring for us and giving financially to us. If you’d like any more information, please contact: catherine@ togetherforsheffield.co.uk / 07526721115.

THREE WAYS TO PRAY FOR ASCEND:

• For our young adults to keep building meaningful relationships with our team

• For employers to be open to a different way of recruiting and partnering with us

• For the team to grow in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control.

More BLOKES saying ‘yes’ in S17

While picking up spoil at a home landscaping project, Steve - a heavy goods truck driver - jumped out of his wagon, shouting, “Aren’t you a Christian, David? Can you tell me about it?”

David - a digger driver and landscape gardener - led Steve to a commitment to Christ in a matter of moments and suggested Steve follow up by joining the BLOKES WhatsApp group & visiting a local meeting in S17. The BLOKES meeting now has 64 men who regularly interact, with many saying “yes” to Jesus for the first time. Revival, is this what it looks like?

One of the organisers of BLOKES - Matthew Gavins - said; “We’ve been seeing men from all walks of life, but especially somewhat overlooked tradesmen, open and accepting of Jesus, and saying ‘yes’ on an almost weekly basis. The group talks to these men on their wavelength, in a way they can grasp in gritty and real terms all can understand, in a neutral location with lots of tea and pizza too! We often

Uplifting day for women in Sheffield

In an uplifting display of unity, women from across the region congregated for a conference at the Rock Christian Centre. Centered around empowerment, faith, and discussing issues like domestic violence, the event was a unique place for women across the city to connect.

With Josephine Kobusingye and the RCC Worship Team guiding the attendees, the conference featured insightful talks, interactive workshops, and stalls offering resources and services from the Matlock use short Bible Project videos with incredible results.”

This novel group is discipling men at all stages of faith, or seeking faith, and getting to men who’ve never been reached by a traditional church. Their favourite question? “Heaven – yes, no or maybe? Can I show you “the Way”?”

Please pray for the group, and contact them if you’d like to visit or set up your own local “BLOKES” group where you live. Find out more at www.

BLOKES.church

Christian Bookshop, Sheffield Afro-Caribbean Mental Health Association, Jericho Road Project, and more. A true celebration of unity, strength, and faith, the day served as a beacon of hope in tackling serious issues and fostering mutual support.

Joy and Fun as churches work together in S17

story-reading, picnics and plenty of inflatables for the whole community to enjoy

Gospel in a spirit of unity and collaboration.

As we go to print, churches and Christians from across S17 are getting ready for the Joy Fun Day on Saturday 24 June. It’s advertised as ‘a free gift from Christians and churches to our community in S17’. There will be a public

This is a huge undertaking, where over six local churches from different traditions and denominations are coming together to serve and bless their community. Representatives from each church have been meeting to pray together for over a year now, and recently made a public commitment to work together in sharing the

Scan the QR code below to read an update about the Fun Day on the Arise Stories blog.

If you would like to see something similar happen in your area contact ben@ togetherforsheffield.co.uk