This is happening across the UK and beyond through partnerships of local churches, school, community, diocese, and mission agencies coming together to prayerfully discern how God is calling us to connect with young people in a particular local context. 

We firmly believe that the establishment of MYCs will transform the lives of hundreds of young people, raising up young evangelists and disciples of Christ.  By working with young people, coming alongside them to provide support, guidance and nurture and enabling them to take ownership of what they do, we will be helping them grow and flourish, instilling confidence and a feeling of continuity, relationship and stability in their lives.  This can lead to a transformation of local communities, reducing youth crime and increasing social opportunities and aspirations for young people.
 

MYCN aims to change the ‘age old’ story of falling church attendance among young people, by helping to write a ‘new story’ as we work with others to reach out to 11-18 years olds with the good news of Jesus and grow church with young people in a contextually relevant ways. The need for this has been widely recognised: -

CONSULTATION
Wide consultation across dioceses in the Northern Province in the period 2017-19 revealed a need to press the reset button on evangelism and disciple-making with 11-18 year olds.  Furthermore, regional church leaders of all denominations said they lacked the ‘know how’ to grow a local church for young people.  This is what MYCN has been founded to provide, using tried and tested models of youth church to help people across the UK to develop something in their own context.

GENERAL SYNOD 
Further recognition of the need to respond urgently to the fall in church attendance among young people was provided by General Synod in March 2020 in its paper GS2161 (Children & Youth Ministry).  This also recognised a major missional opportunity and mentioned MYCN as an example of the type of initiative that is likely to begin reversing the decline.
Read extracts from the General Synod...

MYCs and the Future
The work of MYCs during the pandemic revealed to us just how vital MYCN will be in the future and how we can adapt.  As new MYCs are developed through partnerships between school, church and community, more and more young people can be nurtured within a safe environment.  They gradually become empowered to develop, gaining self-esteem and fulfillment, and take responsibility for their futures and the spreading of the Gospel.

The recent surge in community action as local people across the UK have worked together to deliver food parcels and care for the vulnerable and the elderly can be built upon, and echoes well with the MYCN ethos of community co-operation.

We have discovered how community and relationships can still be maintained through the use of Zoom, other social media and the telephone, and other means will inevitably emerge as technology advances.

Furthermore, with the lockdown, churches are experiencing a loss of contact with their young people and therefore MYCN experience will be invaluable as they recover ground.