What's next
See, I am doing a new thing
Marston Moretaine is a village of just over six thousand people. We think God is already at work here — in gardens and kitchens and school halls, long before we turned up. This is what we're seeing, and what we're praying towards next.
We didn't arrive with a vision. We arrived with an ache.
Dan and Annie came to Vale as pioneer ministers in July 2024. Before that there were months of prayer-walking the new estate, sitting in the community centre, and drinking a great deal of tea.
What we found were people who were hungry — already out in the village, already serving, already noticing their neighbours — who needed someone to run alongside them into the harvest rather than tend a dwindling garden. Slowly, quietly, it became clear. This was the place.
“The vision came later. It came from him. And it came slowly. Mission is received before it is invented.”
Letters on Mission in MarstonWhat we keep hearing in this village
We've spent a lot of time listening — on doorsteps, in the pub, across the table at the community centre. The same thing comes up more than any other, and it isn't what you'd expect in a village that looks prosperous and content.
It's disconnection. People are lonely behind nice front doors. When we ask what good news would actually look like, the answer is rarely about belief — it's about being known. Noticed. Somebody showing up when it isn't convenient.
And here's the part that surprised us most: people are far warmer towards Jesus than they are towards the institution that carries his name. The injustices they want the church to speak into are local and concrete — cold homes, hidden poverty, older people on their own, children being left out.
That's not a problem to be solved with a better programme. It's a call to be present.
What's already growing
Church that doesn't look like church — yet
We're not trying to build one big thing. We're trying to grow several small ones, each rooted in a particular place and a particular slice of village life, where belonging can happen long before believing.
The Table
A free community meal at the community centre. Nearly 150 different people have eaten with us since it launched in January, most with no church connection at all. Run alongside the Parish Council, FareShare and Co-op volunteers.
Storytellers
A team from Vale heads into Marston Moreteyne VC School to tell the big stories of the Bible — around 150 children every week. We're grateful to be trusted in our local school.
Messy Church
Creative, joyful, all-age church for families — crafts, story, songs and food. Averaging around forty.
Messy Mornings
The same welcome, built around preschoolers and the grown-ups who bring them.
Doubts & Drinks
Faith conversations at The Bell for people who'd rather bring their questions than leave them at the door.
Life Groups
Three groups across the village, where the week actually gets talked about and prayed through.
“The Table is church before it looks like church. Which means it might be the most honest expression of church we've ever been part of. We did not build this. We showed up, and God was already here.”
Letters on Mission in MarstonWhere we've got to
Small, specific, real
Our understanding of church keeps shifting — from gathering for a service to scattering for commission. The measure of a good week now includes Tuesday afternoon, not only Sunday morning.
What we're praying towards
Three things that don't exist yet
None of these have started. Each one needs somebody to help make it happen — so if you read one of these and something stirs, that's worth a conversation.
An idea we're praying towards
The Shed
A place for working men to gather. Blokes who've come off a shift or finished a job and want somewhere to land — with other men, over something decent to eat, with room for the conversations that don't happen easily anywhere else.
An idea we're praying towards
The Venue
Somewhere in the village for 12–16s. Their own space, on their own terms — not tacked onto something for younger children, and not a youth club run at them. Something they'd actually choose.
Something we're exploring
A village hub
We're exploring a community hub in the heart of Marston Moretaine — a place not just for programmes, but for presence, partnership and possibility. It's early days, and we'd rather say that honestly than promise a building we haven't got.
And the things we haven't cracked
- We don't yet have anything for sixteen to thirty year olds. There's a real gap there and we haven't found the right expression for it in Marston. We haven't given up on it — but we'd rather name it than paper over it.
- Money is tight. Our growth is coming mainly from people with no church background, which is exactly what we hoped for, and also means the giving base grows slowly.
- Leadership capacity is stretched. Dan and Annie share one full-time post between them, bi-vocationally. Almost everything else runs on volunteers.
“We are still in the early stages of something. But we are here. We are staying.”
Letters on Mission in MarstonGet involved
Is this the thing you've been waiting for someone to start?
You don't need a plan, a theology degree or a spare ten hours a week. If something here stirs you — come and talk. We'd love to pray it through with you.