Be independent – but not alone
Providing support for safeguarding, property matters, funding and navigating times of crisis – that’s how The Congregational Federation can help your church.
At CRE 25 for the first time in a number of years, it provides support, fellowship and learning for some 200 independent UK churches run by their members and will promote its Thirty by 2030 campaign.
The federation also creates opportunities for fellowship and learning via courses, events and other resources, always mindful of protecting the independence and unique identity of each member church.
‘At our 2025 National Assembly we welcomed City Chapel UK into membership,’ Yvonne Campbell (pictured) the federation’s general secretary, told CRE News. ‘We appreciate the vitality and strong Christian witness it promotes and look forward to supporting the church in its work and mission. We are keen to extend that welcome to other churches who would wish to join us for mutual support and encouragement.’
The Congregational Federation is there for:
- Practical support – A broad range of high quality, in-house resources and advice is available from their highly qualified and experienced staff team
- Meaningful fellowship – Members can join with like-minded churches to worship, share, learn, encourage and grow
- True independence – Your church can maintain its freedom, whilst easing many of its challenges
You can pick up an information pack and talk to federation representatives at CRE 25.
- The Congregational Federation are on stand O5 at CRE 25
Main photo: Yvonne Campbell, General Secretary
CRE 2025
See a complete list of exhibitors at CRE 25
CRE 25 is Wed 15 and Thu 16 Oct
Book your ticket here for as little as £3
Where capital appeal advice bears fruit – six years on
The most effective input from a fundraising consultant usually comes very early on in the project – even six years prior to completion.
That was the case at St Cleers Chapel in Somerton, Somerset, where broadcaster Rev Richard Coles is the teaching pastor. The chapel has been part of the town’s Christian heritage for more than 60 years. In 2014 the elders realised an extensive building project was required and were presented with an estimate of nearly £850,000 by a local architect.
Time passed and attempts to secure grant funding yielded nothing. Several chapel members felt that a more modest plan could achieve the required benefits and asked David Saint, founder and then chair of Action Planning, to help them put a realistic fundraising strategy in place.
David travelled to Somerton to deliver a two-day workshop to share his experience of church capital appeals, set out a realistic fundraising strategy and work with chapel members to build a case for support. It was 2018.
Dr Andrew Quayle, Chair of Trustees, remembers it well.
‘David gave everyone a realistic idea of what the project would entail,’ he told CRE News. ‘The money wasn’t just going to come from big donors or grant giving trusts. He said you’ll only raise about 10 per cent in grants – the other 90 per cent needs to be raised by church members themselves. This turned out to be very prophetic.’
In 2022, restoration work began. Working to David’s plan, the congregation had raised sufficient funds to convince five or six grant organisations to put in around £30,000 – in addition to some very generous individual donations.
At the end of 2024, six years after delivering his workshop, David received a letter from Dr Quayle, informing him that the renovation project had been completed.
‘We now have a lovely, refurbished and equipped building with which everyone is delighted,’ wrote Dr Quayle.
‘Consultants don’t often get to hear of the final outcome of their input, so it was a joy to be told that the project had been successfully completed,’ said David, ‘and that the workshop had helped the members develop a sense of what might be achievable.’
- Action Planning are on stand G3 at CRE 25
Main photo: St Cleers Chapel in Somerton, Somerset
CRE 2025
See a complete list of exhibitors at CRE 25
CRE 25 is Wed 15 and Thu 16 Oct
Book your ticket here for as little as £3
Our mission: helping to turn browsers into believers
Helping faith-based organisations clarify who they are, strengthen their brand and communicate with confidence – that’s Bara Studio’s mission.
Based in Bristol, Bara Studio is a creative agency with a clear purpose – partnering with churches, charities and Christian organisations to grow their impact through creative strategy, excellent design and powerful websites. The team brings together strategists, designers and storytellers who believe that creativity is a calling with every project shaped by a commitment to people, planet and purpose.
Their work includes the full rebrand of Baby Basics, the national baby bank network supported by the Princess of Wales, and the development of a new identity for Woodlands Church Family (pictured), one of the largest evangelical church networks in the country.
‘The strategic workshops helped us as a leadership, staff and volunteer team to discover our vision and values, and translate these into a visual identity,’ said
Dave Mitchell, senior leader of the church. ‘The updated logo has a flexibility to serve a growing movement and can be applied distinctively in local congregations. The creative brand system allows us to express our individuality but also our togetherness.’
Bara Studio is now making it even easier for churches and charities to access high-quality branding with the launch of the Charity Brand Accelerator – a proven programme designed to help organisations produce strong creative assets more confidently. You will find out more at the Bara stand at CRE 25.
- Bara Studio is on stand W4 at CRE 25
Main photo: Bara Studio at work
CRE 2025
See a complete list of exhibitors at CRE 25
CRE 25 is Wed 15 and Thu 16 Oct
Book your ticket here for as little as £3
Choose from 50 venues that inspire learning, networking and community
A big, happy family of academic venues – that’s how Rachael Lee (pictured) sums up Academic Venue Solutions (AVS).
‘We’re here to make it easy for event organisers to find the perfect setting – and with members located all over the UK, there’s something for every type of event,’ said Rachael, membership director at AVS. ‘What’s more our team are event experts with a vast wealth of knowledge of our venues so, whatever your needs we will find a stunning space in the perfect place for you!’
AVS is a friendly, not-for-profit marketing group representing over 50 academic venues across the UK, will, once again, be exhibiting at CRE 25.
Since 1981, the organisation has been working hand in hand with its members to connect event organisers with a wide choice of high-quality venues – all at no cost to the booker. From modern lecture theatres to historic halls, from flexible meeting rooms to on-site accommodation, AVS members offer unique spaces that inspire learning, networking and community.
At CRE 25, AVS will be joined on their stand with representatives from:
- University of Surrey
- Roehampton Venues
- Warwick Conferences, The University of Warwick
- Nottingham Venues
- University of Salford
Visitors will be able to meet the AVS team and its member universities in person, discuss event needs, and explore the diverse spaces available – from intimate meeting rooms to large-scale conference facilities.
‘CRE 25 is a brilliant opportunity to connect with the Christian events community and help planners discover venues they may never have previously considered,’ said Rachael.
- Academic Venue Solutions are on stand N1 at CRE 25
A new way to stretch out to your local community
When surfing the internet people are unlikely to search for a specific church website but they will look for local parent and toddler groups, craft clubs, debt advice, prayer guidance and church service times.
A new platform helps them search and find your church’s activities.
‘Stretch-wide enables churches to work as one, as Jesus prayed,’ founder David Lee told CRE News. ‘The more churches join, the more your church’s activities will be seen on page one. People won’t have to scroll through loads of other offerings before they come to yours!’
The company has already successfully developed christmas-events.co.uk and easter-events.co.uk .
‘These festivals celebrate Jesus but it would be easy to think the church no longer exists,’ said David. ‘We want to put them at the top of every seasonal search.
‘As a CRE special offer, we will advertise your church’s prayer times FREE.
We’re looking forward to meeting you and promoting the amazing things your church does!’
- Stretch-wide are on stand V1 at CRE 25
‘Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left…’ Isaiah 54:1
CRE 2025
See a complete list of exhibitors at CRE 25
CRE 25 is Wed 15 and Thu 16 Oct
Book your ticket here for as little as £3
Time to get to know your way around safeguarding
If churches needing a system to manage safeguarding, we have the required tool.
So says Kyle Cottingham, managing director of iKnow Software, used by thousands of organisations, from small community groups to major charities. Based in Solihull, the team is passionate about helping organisations use technology effectively.
‘Our iKnow safeguarding software is a powerful solution to meet the needs of churches, community groups, charities and business organisations, securely managing concerns and checks within the one place,’ Kyle told CRE News. ‘It tracks issues raised through various stages and is highly customisable with a full audit history of who added what and when. Safeguarding concerns can be raised securely by QR Code or website embeds with the concerns going straight into iKnow Safeguarding for review.’
The checks module means you can easily manage and stay on top of checks with all the information in one place.
‘Organisations in England and Wales can also set reminders for the DBS Update Service,’ said Kyle. ‘There is also integration with fellow CRE exhibitor Thirtyone:eight for churches that use them for their DBS checks.’
iKnow Safeguarding, demonstrated at CRE 25, works in a single location or on multiple sites and is used by whole denominations.
- IKnow Safeguarding is on the Church Edit stand L9 at CRE 25
CRE 2025
See a complete list of exhibitors at CRE 25
CRE 25 is Wed 15 and Thu 16 Oct
Book your ticket here for as little as £3
Celebrating 40 years of finer furniture
As well as CRE, Fullers Finer Furniture are celebrating 40 years of excellence in craftsmanship and service.
Best known for their award-winning, gas height-adjustable Canterbury and York lecterns, they are also one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of bespoke church furniture.
‘We felt that marking such a milestone deserved something special,’ said Paul Fuller, proprietor and founder of the company, ‘so we hosted a charity ball in support of Children’s Hospice South West – a cause very close to our hearts.’
The evening proved truly spectacular, with incredible generosity from fellow businesses donating raffle and auction prizes.
‘We were thrilled to raise an outstanding £6,008.75 for the charity, Paul told CRE News. ‘I was delighted to present the cheque to Lucie Perryman from Children’s Hospice South West on behalf of everyone who contributed.
‘For nearly three decades, CRE has been a highlight of our calendar, giving us the privilege of meeting countless customers. Whether you’re looking for a lectern, altar table, font, audio-visual cabinet, or even a complete vestry re-model, our team will be delighted to meet you and discuss your needs.’
- Fullers Finer Furniture are on stand H8 at CRE 25
Photo: Paul Fuller (right) presents a cheque to Lucie Perryman of the Children’s Hospice South West
CRE 2025
See a complete list of exhibitors at CRE 25
CRE 25 is Wed 15 and Thu 16 Oct
Book your ticket here for as little as £3
Your church and Net Zero: a practical guide
Making your church sustainable: a practical guide to getting to Net Zero is the title of a talk at CRE 25 given by Apostolos Petrakis and Jack Boyn (pictured) of Archangel Architects/Church Build (11am, Wed 15 Oct).
It’s one of dozens of free talks and presentations at CRE 25. For a full list click here.
Based on a recently published book with the same title, in this session you will:
- Be equipped with principles and resources for delivering change to buildings, including the theological and missional aspects of sustainability
- Be shown an overview of the technologies available and changes that can be made to move away from fossil fuels and reduce energy use
- Learn about the processes involved working with experts to determine the most appropriate solution for your church building and navigating the permissions process in making changes (planning, listed building consent, faculty etc)
- Be shown case studies of churches that have made sustainability improvements to their buildings
- Be given the opportunity to participate in a brief Q+A session
Archangel Architects, exhibiting as Church Build at CRE 25, have worked for more than 20 years to design and deliver excellent buildings.
‘As a team, we work collaboratively from our studio near Cambridge,’ said Church Build’s Nigel Walter. ‘We believe the best buildings are created from a close partnership between client and architect. We like to think of our role as being your critical friend: at your side to support and guide, but also there to question.
‘When choosing an architect, what you are really buying is not a product (any half-decent architect can deliver a completed building), nor even a service, but a relationship; and we’re looking for a matching degree of engagement and enthusiasm in our clients.’
- Church Build are on stand G1 at CRE 25
CRE 2025
See a complete list of exhibitors at CRE 25
CRE 25 is Wed 15 and Thu 16 Oct
Book your ticket here for as little as £3
Heating firm’s great green giveaway
Cherry or apple – the choice of free sapling will be yours on the ChurchEcoMiser stand at CRE 25.
‘They’ll be given to people who visit our stand for information,’ said ChurchEcoMiser’s Chris Dunphy. ‘Our commitment to working towards a greener future is to plant 500 square metres of woodland for every church heating system installed. We do this through the National Trust and each church is issued with a certificate and proof of purchase.’
Chris has spent nearly all his working life designing and installing heating systems exclusively for churches. He developed ChurchEcoMiser in 2016 as the ideal system for remote churches where gas was either unavailable or expensive to install but it proved a popular option with all churches.
Before that he served as the heating advisor to the Diocese of Sheffield for more than 10 years and was also chairman of Rochdale Football Club until 2018. Over the past four decades, he has personally overseen more than 1200 church heating installations, ranging from historically significant buildings to modern churches, all of which play a vital role in their respective communities.
He’ll be available to talk over the problems brought to him by visitors to CRE 25 – and hand out 100 trees each day as he does so!
- ChurchEcoMiser are on stand J1 at CRE 25
Photo: Chris Dunphy (right) at CRE South West 22 with Sky Sports’ Simon Thomas.
CRE 2025
See a complete list of exhibitors at CRE 25
CRE 25 is Wed 15 and Thu 16 Oct
Book your ticket here for as little as £3
Lyric videos for worship: the ultimate solution from CCLI
A growing number of churches are turning to lyric videos as a simple and effective solution when musicians aren’t available.
Lyric videos (see example here) are music videos featuring lyrics that appear on screen in time with the lead vocal. This makes them a more effective alternative to backing tracks.
Recent surveys show that the use of lyric videos increased during the pandemic and has continued since. But while demand for lyric videos remains strong, sourcing versions that are suitable and legal can be a real challenge.
Rich Burrough, of CRE 25 exhibitor Christian Copyright Licensing Inc, said: ‘Unsurprisingly, the obvious source for many churches is YouTube. However, as YouTube prohibits the use of its videos in public without explicit permission of the copyright owner, many churches are unwittingly infringing copyright by playing them during services.
‘Many lyric videos on YouTube are not authorised, can be interrupted by ads, sometimes contain long instrumental sections, and may not be in a suitable key – so a better solution is needed. That’s exactly what CCLI provides with our new range of lyric videos.’
SongSelect Lyric Videos are fully legal for use in all areas of church life, from worship services to small groups. Purpose built in response to customer research, they are recorded in congregation-friendly keys, with valued features such as Next Line Preview. But what really makes them stand out is their simple customisation options.
‘While all our lyric videos are easy to use, and can be played just as they are, it is also possible to format them to fit your specific needs,’ Rich told CRE News. ‘You can adjust the text size and position, change the font and the number of lines shown. You can select a solid colour background, or choose a background image or motion graphic. You can even adjust the volume of the vocal in relation to the music.’
Because smaller churches are most likely to rely on lyric videos, SongSelect Lyric Videos are available via an annual subscription tiered to the average attendance at the main weekly service. No additional copyright licence is required.
Launched this month with more than 500 popular titles, the number has already grown to 600 – with more being added all the time.
Officials from CCLI will be at CRE 25 to show visitors the wealth of available songs and how the system works.
- CCLI are on stand H7 at CRE 25
CRE 2025
See a complete list of exhibitors at CRE 25
CRE 25 is Wed 15 and Thu 16 Oct
Book your ticket here for as little as £3