For more information about any of the activities listed below, please email Rachel Bundock.
On Sundays at St James…
Crèche
Sundays 11.00 am
There is a parent supervised creche available for babies and young children at the back of St James’ church building which contains a great range of toys and books.
On Sundays at Emmanuel…
After an initial time of worship together the children and young people leave to join one of our children and young people’s groups during most of the 10.30 Emmanuel services. These groups meet most weeks except for the first and fifth Sundays of the month, which are all age services in church.
Crèche
Sundays 10.30 am
There is a parent supervised creche available for babies and toddlers for the duration of the service.
Doves (Pre-school, ages 3 and 4 years)
Sundays 10.30 am
A group for the younger member of the church, suitable for children who are able to be left without a parent. Time for play in lots of space and a Bible story and related craft. Parents sign the children in before the start of the service and accompany them to the group. Parents return to the service and collect and sign out their children later in the service.
Eagles (Reception to Y4)
Sundays 10.30 am
Godly Play is a Montessori-based approach to children’s spiritual development. Each session begins with one of the stories or parables from the Bible, or one of the liturgical actions of the Church. These stories are told using beautiful and natural materials. The story is followed by a time of guided ‘wondering’ leading to a free response time using arts and crafts.
During the week…
Toddler Groups
Wednesday and Thursday (10 am-11.30 am), in the Lower Hall of the Parish Centre, behind Emmanuel Church
Our toddler groups offer a friendly, fun and informal opportunity for you and your child to meet other families and make friends. We have lots of toys and activities in our modern and comfortable Parish Centre hall, along with plenty of tea and coffee for the adults and a snack time of toast and fruit for the children. We end our sessions with a group song time using a special box of beautiful knitted nursery rhyme toys.
The groups are most suitable for mobile babies and toddlers (approximately 9 months to 3 years) and run during school term times. These are very popular groups and there are sometimes waiting lists for them. Please note these groups are not drop-in; they are for families wanting to attend weekly and so we take payment at the start of each half term to cover the whole period (usually six to seven weeks).
Due to the large amount of interest in joining our groups, we give priority for places to parents living in the Didsbury area who will be attending with their children, in order to help local parents as well as their children make friends. If you don’t live in the Didsbury area we will happily add you to the lists, but you may wait a little longer for a place.
Please contact Rachel Bundock if you’d like to be added to one or both waiting lists, telling her which day/s you’re interested in, the name and age of your child and giving her a mobile number too. Even if your baby is currently too young for the groups, do please get in touch to join one of the waiting lists anyway.
Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Adults
Safeguarding is central to everything we do and we follow the comprehensive guidelines and requirements laid out for us by the Diocese of Manchester. We also expect third party users of our facilities to adhere to comparable standards to ensure the well-being of everyone using our buildings.
