Divine Inspiration is an initiative of the Diocese of Coventry, encouraging churches to widen their welcome to visitors in order to promote new connections and interaction and to broaden appeal and interest. It's a growing network of social and community events based in and around churches, and below is an introduction from them.

Divine Inspiration is about people, buildings, stories and history. A three–year project, funded by English Heritage and the Heritage Lottery Fund, it helps volunteers in Anglican parish churches across the Diocese of Coventry to take a new look at their church heritage and space and make connections with visitors in creative and unexpected ways.

Visitors come in all shapes and sizes and for different reasons. Some are seasoned church crawlers, some exploring their family history. They might be making a sentimental journey from miles away or from a few yards along the road. They may simply be searching for a sense of peace or be wanting to experience the ‘power of place’. Whoever they are they need to be invited in, welcomed and not made to feel that our church buildings are ‘members only’ social clubs!

This diversity of visitors means that any kind of ‘off the peg’ solution when it comes to working out how we welcome visitors and interpret our buildings is likely to be inappropriate.

We work hard with church volunteers de–bunking the myth. Why do we assume that everyone who makes a visit to a church knows what we use a font for or what a flying buttress looks like? There is so much else that can capture the imagination in terms of telling stories and sharing our heritage. English Heritage and the Heritage Lottery Fund have gladly funded this work because they see the added value that the education and support of volunteers in our churches gives to the health of our ancient buildings in the longer term.

We begin by asking churches to carry out a ‘check-up’, called ‘You’re Welcome!’. This is a hands–on, practical hike around the whole church site. It considers the kinds of people come to visit and why. It looks at how easy it is – or not! — to get in. Just how welcome are these people made to feel? What happens when they eventually get access and is there anything to see of interest? If so is it interpreted clearly? What does they take away with them as a memory and are they likely to want to come again or tells others? It gives the team a really objective idea of how strangers or newcomers see a place that they take for granted on a daily basis.

We then support the church through the process of recognising strengths and weaknesses and suggest a list of short–term aims. These can range from quite simple things, like improving the signage, or updating leaflets, to more radical ideas, like carrying out a churchyard audit to help those looking for family history clues. Longer–term solutions, like developing church space for activity other than worship, are also explored. Where financial solutions are hard to come by churches need to be more resourceful and entrepreneurial. In addition the social capital gained through this kind of development work is likely to be beneficial to the wider community. We have churches in our Diocese who run a monthly film club, hold fish and chip suppers and dances, accommodate art classes, libraries, advice centres — all this in church itself. Many churches have come full circle aiming to become central to community life – a function performed with different rates of success over the centuries.

Part of our work is also about getting churches to look at making friends. There are clever partnerships being made with schools for example. If you study the curriculum for all key stages there are modules in Geography, History, Science, Citizenship, Art/Craft and Design, Music, Literacy – even Maths! – that churches can contribute to. One parish we know invite Reception age children to explore church armed with dusters, sending them off around the building with permission to discover hidden nooks and crannies, dusting as they go. Many children never have the opportunity or the freedom to practice this simple act of caring for ancient treasures.

We have a website www.divine-inspiration.org.uk, signposting visitors to churches where you will find downloadable resources and a tool-kit of practical Action Guides and we deliver a series of training courses for volunteers and a monthly newsletter, ‘ The Gatekeeper’ .

Helen McGowan and Janet Sewell are the Project Officers delivering this three-year project which runs until July 2009.

If you would like to find out more about Divine Inspiration and the ‘You’re Welcome!’ exercise you can call us on 024 7652 1346/306 or go to our website where you can explore the initial 30 churches we are featuring, events being held across the Diocese and the resources on the Ambassadors page.