Transforming Lives for Good (TLG), is a Christian children’s charity on a mission to see struggling children find hope in the face of adversity. We partner with churches who have a heart for building vital relationships with their local communities, we offer a practical approach which builds strong connections between churches, families and schools. It’s a pleasure to one of the ‘Charities and Networks in Association’ with Churches Together England and it’s a privilege to share a little of our story and ministry.
Beginning with the work of one church in Bradford over 22 years ago, we now work with local churches throughout the UK and Portugal to offer a lifeline to children and families facing a range of devastating challenges. Whether at school, at home or in any other setting, we believe that all children deserve to feel confident, safe, happy and be filled with hope for their future!
Our Early Intervention programme provides struggling children with a safe space to explore and process the difficult challenges they are facing. It looks like one child, one coach, for one hour each week.
It’s amazing to partner with Christians Togetherin Bude and Stratton who have a brilliant team of coaches supporting children and families in a local school. Here’s what their coordinator, Debbie, has to say:
“It’s only when we talk to each other and to our school that we begin to understand the impact we have. Sometimes there will be obvious impacts in a session with a coached child – a child who is upset at the start is happier by the end of the hour. More often, we probably wonder what difference we have made. However, our school has seen some huge improvements! One child was likely to have to move school and was often out of class but after a year of coaching, his behaviour and attitude changed completely and the school is certain that the difference to this child came from the impact of coaching. The coach still can’t quite believe that a year of playing games could have this effect, but it just shows that what is key is being the consistent, trusted adult for our coached children.
We have also been asked as a team to help with craft activities at the Holiday Clubs that have recently started. The fact that the organiser turned to us as a team shows that our impact is reaching beyond the 1:1 of coaching.
I remember being told during my training 2 years ago that God already knows who we will be coaching! That has stuck with me and gives me the confidence to continue to do His work.”
We believe that local churches have the power to transform lives. We’ve seen it happen, all across the UK, time and time again. If you’d like to find out more we’d love to chat further with you. You can start the conversation this week by submitting an enquiry form via this link: www.tlg.org.uk/your-church/enquire-about-running-a-tlg-programme or by emailing partnerships@tlg.org.uk.
Rob Stevenette, Head of Church Partnership
