Inclusion to Belonging
Over one hundred people came to the launch of an exhibition called ‘Inclusion to Belonging’ at Hull Minster.
Over one hundred people came to the launch of an exhibition called ‘Inclusion to Belonging’ at Hull Minster, organised by Mustard Seed Community Minister Ann Wilkinson.
Ann completed Stepping Up in 2023 and knew that she wanted to use her own lived experience of autism, and her years of experience of working with people with different learning abilities to serve God. Ann’s vision was for the church to be a safe, loving and welcoming community where people with different learning abilities and/or neurodiversity can find a place to belong.
Ann reflects:
We often say everyone is welcome in our churches, yet to enable people to feel that they truly belong in a supportive and loving community takes time, commitment and sometimes thinking ‘outside the box.’ We have seen the people that come into our church as individuals, with their own unique needs, strengths, and gifts and we have put in place things in a way that responds to each person.
We are all ‘fearfully and wonderfully made’ (Psalm 139:13-14). We all have a place in church, no matter how we see or feel the world. Sometimes we need to see or feel church differently, and that's what makes this world the colourful and wonderful place that God made it.
Work Experience and Volunteering
Over the past year, we have been working with students on placement from Northcott 6th Form College, to give them work experience. It is very difficult for young adults with additional needs to be given these opportunities, and we have proven that with just a few reasonable adjustments they flourish, grow, and mature in a supportive and loving environment. We now have a growing number of people with different learning abilities and/or neurodiversity within the volunteer team.
Welcome Café
In our Thursday Welcome Café, we have made lots of new friends from Active Day Care, CASE and Same Difference. We’ve set up a Sensory Tent to enable people to go somewhere quieter when they need to be away from the busyness of the cafe. We lay out a table with sensory fidget toys, which are always well used, and ear defenders are always available for any of our visitors that are sensitive to noise.
Our friends from Active Day Care entertained us at Christmas with songs from ‘The Greatest Showman’ and our friends from CASE often visit and entertain us with singing and dancing. They are full of joy and happiness and it's wonderful to see it spreading over everyone who watches them.
The Mustard Seed parable
This small parable, one of the many stories that Jesus shared, teaches us that from a tiny seed grows a large shrub where the birds of the air can build nests. This is a beautiful image of the church growing to be a community where anyone can find a place to belong.
It is wonderful to see how the tiny seed that Ann planted at Hull Minster has grown with different branches where people are finding a place to belong. Hull Minster has been enriched by the growing number of people with different abilities who attend community activities, are part of the volunteer team, or attend church for prayer and worship each week.
We are delighted to celebrate this journey from ‘Inclusion to Belonging’ and look forward to seeing how this mustard seed continues to grow.