As the Additional Needs Alliance, we seek to inspire change.
Change for the better.
Change for all those families who have found church less than welcoming, or find that attending is almost impossible because of the way we ‘do’ church.
We also want to inspire those who volunteer and work with churches to offer the much needed support that can bless many families who have children with additional needs and disabilities.
Our membership includes those with no faith and those of a different faith, all of whom have found a safe place of belonging and support – knowing that we are a Christian group.
One of the things we have recently done is become a member of the Evangelical Alliance – agreed by our core team who believe this would be a good thing on many levels.
You can see what they stand for here: http://www.eauk.org/connect/about-us/vision-mission-purpose.cfm
I (Kay) am part of their council and feel honoured to be a part of that team. I know their heart for making the church a place of belonging for those who have additional needs and disabilities.
In our Facebook group, some members raised some concerns about our membership of the Evangelical Alliance – mostly to do with the understanding of the term ‘Evangelical’, and what it would mean for the core themes of the group.
One of the many reasons for being members is that phrase “better together”.
We can achieve more, support more, advocate more and listen more when we are a part of a bigger picture. It can amplify our voice in a busy world where inclusion of additional needs and disabilities can often be over looked. Many Christians are not aware of the amazing work the EA do in the area of advocacy – speaking out on behalf of many and successfully creating positive change in our society.
Can I assure you that we will not turn people away because they have a different faith or no faith, or because they don’t identify as an ‘Evangelical’ Christian. We will continue to be an inclusive group campaigning in the area of additional needs and disability. One of the reasons Mark and myself founded this group was to create a place where as a group we could speak together as one voice.
We are better together.
