SPEAKERS

Throughout the conference you will hear from a wide range of speakers, including experienced youthwork practitioners from both church-based and organisational backgrounds. Our speakers will share with you their knowledge and skills as they lead seminars on a variety of issues surrounding youthwork.

Within Main Sessions and Soul Sessions, the speakers will seek to inspire, challenge and stretch you, not only in relation to the youthwork that you do, but also in your personal faith and relationship with God.

Phil Ball

Phil is the Training Programme Officer for Alove UK - The Salvation Army for a new Generation where he is responsible for the development and delivery of the national youthwork strategy. His interests include supporting Man Utd, running and cooking.

Christine Blair

Christine has 26 years experience as a youth worker. She is a qualified counsellor and psychotherapist, and runs a sixth form counselling service. Christine is married with three children and bakes the best chocolate brownies in the world.

Danny Brierley

Danny is a head-hunter with CNA Executive Search involved in senior retail, leisure and Christian appointments, and is a volunteer youth worker at Chawn Hill Church. He has written 3 books as part of Youthwork the resources series.

Richard Bromley

Richard is the director of local ministries for Youth for Christ, overseeing the development and growth of the centres around the UK, as well as being a member of the Youthwork the partnership Executive. Richard is married to Denise, and they have two children, Sarah [who will also be  at the conference] and Ryan.

Sarah Bromley

Sarah is currently studying for her A-Levels taking Art, History, Socialology and English. She enjoys meeting new people and socialising, and takes an active role in the leadership of her church's services. Art is Sarah's main hobby but she also enjoy playing tennis, going to the gym, and hanging out with friends, drinking good coffee.

Dez Brown

Dez is the Youth Pastor at Emmanuel Christian Centre, in Walthamstow London. He is also a man with a story to share; having served a prison term for manslaughter Dez found hope and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. Dez is married to Sheila, and they have four children.

Dan Burke

Dan is a youth director for Ignite Charity, and has been a youth worker for 9 years. Dan has run, and been a choreographer for, Elevate Academy for the last 5 years. Elevate is a dance group that performs all over the country and has helped many people come to faith in Jesus.

Steve Chalke

Steve is the founder of Oasis Global and Faithworks. His other roles include being a member of the Spring Harvest Leadership Team, founder of Parentalk and church.co.uk, CEO of Oasis' Academy Schools, chair of Stop the Traffik and UN GIFT special advisor on community action against human trafficking.

Sandjea Clarke

Sandjea works for ALOVE as a strategic development officer for London Salvation Army projects, with 15 years plus experience in a variety of youthwork contexts. She is the youth team leader for the Salvation Army church in Haringey, and is in love with Jesus, young people and the urban context.

Steve Clifford

Steve is a northerner who has been living in and around London for the last 30 years.  He lives with his wife Ann and children Jake and Jordan together with an extended household of people. Steve chairs the Soul Survivor Leadership Team and, through this role, was led into HOPE 08 (which he also chairs).

Daphne Clifton

Daphne is a business coach, trainer and youth worker. She works with Greenwich YFC with excluded teenagers on an urban priority estate in South East London. A trained Christian listener and regular contributor to Premier Christian Radio, Daphne is a published author and most recently contributed to Church Unlimited.

Chris Curtis

Chris works in Luton for LCET, a local schools charity. He's part of the team launching Schoolswork.co.uk and is passionate about developing more creative and effective input into schools. Chris writes regularly for Youthwork magazine.

Claire Earl

Chocolate-loving Claire has been the youth minister at Burlington Baptist, Ipswich for eight years. Married to the ‘oh so' wise Rich, Claire loves being involved in young people's journeys, hanging out with her mates and laughing. Fortunately she also likes many youthwork essentials like camping, late night chats and trips to coffee shops.

Liz Etherton

Liz is a YFC centre director and is about to become YFC local ministries senior manager. Her previous jobs range from working for a bank to encouraging people to test pants! She is a lover of God, good coffee and organic chocolate.

Andy Frost

Andy is a 29 year old, surf-obsessed, movie loving Londoner, newly married to Jo. He is the Director of Share Jesus International. Much of his energy is spent communication to young people and he has authored a number of books. He co-leads the 'Be Church' community, runs a local youth work, manages a football team and loves Moroccan food.

Jason Gardner

Jason is a lecturer in youth discipleship at the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity. His work aims to look in depth at what it takes to create passionate whole life followers of Christ today. He's also author of Mend the Gap: Can the Church reconnect the generations?

Rachel Gardner

Rachel is co-founder and creative director of Romance Academy, a relationships-positive project that builds young people's self esteem enhanced by sexual delay. She trains people across the UK, Southern Ireland and Sweden to run relationships. Rachel also runs Romance Academy projects in her local area and teaches PSHE in secondary schools in North London.

Helen Gatenby

Helen's home is inner-urban Manchester, where she has lived and worked since 1989. She works on the M13 Project which specialises in detached work and informal education with young people, based in Brunswick, an ethnically diverse area of the city. She is JNC qualified and tutors on JNC qualifying youth work training courses. She recently contributed to Church Unlimited.

Nancy Goudie

Nancy and her husband Ray are directors of NGM, an international pioneering youth ministry working with young people to train them in evangelism, church planting and the media. She is also an author of four books, and leads spiritual health weekends.

Brad Hawkes

Brad is the national leader of New Generation UK. With pupil and student-led groups in over 2000 schools in 20 nations and over 100 full-time volunteers all in their teens or twenties, Brad is passionate about empowering young people to win their generation and finding creative and relevant ways of sharing the message of Jesus. Before joining New Generation he has worked as a youth leader, school teacher and missionary.

James Hewitt

In a previous life James was an accomplished racing cyclist and part time journalist. He is now pursuing his calling and passion with Fusion, developing and promoting student mission through churches and with students across the UK. James is also a student worker in his local church and occasionally gets time to ride his bike.

Lynn James

Lynn currently runs The Solid Rock Youth Centre, an open access coffee bar in Bridgend Town Centre. This is after training as a youth and community worker, working in 3 YMCA's and then 25 years in Social Services. He is an elder in a local Baptist Church, ardent rugby supporter and is passionate about seeing young people sharing their faith.

Philip Jinadu

Philip has been involved in evangelistic ministry for over 20 years. After a number of years working as a national evangelist with Youth for Christ, he transitioned into church leadership. Alongside his role as a church consultant and writer, Philip's first love remains preaching, both to the churched and the un-churched. He has been a main speaker at many national events, including Spring Harvest, Grapevine and Summer Madness.

Gerard Kelly

Gerard is the senior pastor of Crossroads International Church in Amsterdam. He is a writer and poet, and runs the Bless network, a UK agency that works with churches on mainland Europe, and helps people to ‘live for others' through missional engagement.

Jon Langford

For the last 10 years Jon has been the Senior Youth Worker at St Paul's, Salisbury and has been involved in youth work for a total of almost 20 years.  He has worked in both LEA and church provision, and of late has specialised in mentoring young people.  Jon writes for Youthwork magazine, and has written Can We Have a Chat?, which looks at safe practice in one-to-one work.

Chris Macintosh

Chris has been working as a detached youth worker in Ardwick and Longsight, Manchester for 10 years. Both areas are in inner city Manchester and have a high level of drug, gun and gangland activity. Chris attends Vinelife church which meets in Hulme.

Susie Mapledoram

Susie has worked as a schools-based diocesan youth officer in Blackburn for nearly 3 years and prior to that she worked for the Centre of Youth Ministry, as well as a being a church-based youth worker. Susie has a wealth of experience and wisdom in drug, sexual health and self esteem issues.

Sam McKee

Sam is a youth worker for Elim Church Lane End and works in local schools. He was saved aged 15 whilst reading the Bible, and saw a move of God at his secondary school with lasting and powerful effects.

Helen Millward

Helen, or Milly has she's more commonly known, has been in the youth work business both in this country and abroad for more years than she cares to admit. She has been involved in a number of projects and activities for young people, particularly those with special needs. Milly has a degree in Applied Youth & Community Work and became her church's full-time employed youth leader in 2005.

Dave Newton

Dave is director of national ministries for Youth for Christ. He has 16 years experience in youth work having worked in local authority, church setting and Christian organisations. Dave is a gifted communicator, speaking regularly around the country and occasionally round the world, with a passion to mobilise and motivate young people in mission. Dave is married to Liz and they have three children.

Mike Pilavachi

Mike is founder and pastor of Soul Survivor Watford, a congregation aiming to reach out to the young people of Watford, and he is also the founder and leader of Soul Survivor. Mike is an author and international speaker.

Dr Sharon Prentis

Sharon is currently director of Health Development Projects for Oasis Community Learning, a charity set to sponsor specialist academies. She oversees the development of a range of health and wellbeing services including a Children's Centre at Enfield, London. Since training in the NHS over 20 years ago, Sharon has worked in a number of high profile British health and education organisations.

Patrick Regan

Patrick is the founder and director of XLP a charity that works with young people using school assemblies and lessons, after school and lunch time clubs, a bus that goes to local estates, arts showcase events and a 'Gunz Down' tour to empower them and help them make wise lifestyle choices.

Nigel Roberts

Nigel currently has two roles; half of his time is spent working as YFC schools resource manager, helping in training and resource writing for schools workers nationally, and the other half working in high schools as an extended schools manager. In any spare time that he has, he runs a small film company called talking donkey, making feature films with teenagers.

Russell Rook

Having helped to create and lead ALOVE The Salvation Army for a new generation, Russell has recently founded Chapel Street, a change agency working with local churches to bring about regeneration through public services and social enterprise. Russell regularly works with Spring Harvest, is a speaker and author and is part of the leadership team of Raynes ark Community Church.

Jill Rowe

Director of participation at Oasis UK, Jill is involved in the strategy and delivery of youth and community inclusion work in the new Oasis Academy Schools.  She is a qualified Youth and Community Worker and teacher. Jill loves people very much and is passionate about seeing communities transformed into the kind of places where people really can flourish. She is a volunteer youth worker at her church, as well as doing some speaking and teaching.

Martin Saunders

Martin is the editor of Youthwork Magazine and is also the chair of Youthwork the partnership. He is the author of seven books, and attends the South West London Vineyard Church. Martin is married to Jo and they have two small children, Joel and Naomi.I'm passionate about God and about connecting with young people.

Amy Stock

Amy is the project director of schoolswork.co.uk, a UK wide network for Christians working in schools. She can also be found hanging around in school canteens and generally creating chaos in Luton's classrooms as part of her chaplaincy role with the Luton Churches Education Trust. Amy is passionate about God and about connecting with young people.

Jo Taylor

Jo is the London youth and students coordinator for Tearfund - resourcing and supporting young people, students and youth leaders as they engage with God's passion for justice. She lives in Westminster with her husband, Steve, and son, Hudson, and loves exploring the city, baking and The West Wing.

Ruth Valerio

Ruth is the manager of A Rocha's Living Lightly 24:1 project, which enables people to live greener, simpler lives. She works closely with Spring Harvest and spends much of her time speaking and writing on issues of justice and the environment, as well as living it out practically at home in a number of different ways. Ruth lives in Chichester with her husband and two daughters and is a part of Revelation Church.

Matthew Visick-Evans

Following 4 years leading Oasis in Uganda with his lovely wife Ruth, Matthew now works for the Oasis Academies team. He is a qualified accountant, volunteer debt advisor, has helped with church youth work and has a dodgy Welsh accent.

Damian Wharton

Damian is the head of youth and student ministry for Spring Harvest, and a member of the Youthwork the partnership executive. He's married to Andrea and is often beaten up by his two boys, aged 6 months and 4!

Phil Wall

Phil is a leadership coach and consultant within the corporate world. He and his wife, Wendy, founded Hope HIV, an international development organisation supporting AIDS orphans in Africa.

Dave Wiles

Dave is the Chief Executive of Frontier Youth Trust and has been involved in direct youth and community work for over thirty years. He spends much of his time speaking at Christian events and has regular features in Youthwork magazine. Dave likes reading, walking, travel, sleeping and real ale, although not necessarily in that order or all at one time.

Peter Wynter

Pete has been involved in youth ministry for over ten years. A trained teacher, he has since worked as a chaplain in a Young Offenders Prison and as the youth pastor and Senior Staff member at St Andrews, Chorleywood. He is a regular contributor at Soul Survivor and leads Onelife - an organisation working across the UK and overseas to resource and train teenagers in leadership.

Sarah Wynter

Sarah is the deputy editor of Youthwork Magazine. She is also a
volunteer youth worker at St Andrews, Chorleywood and is helping to establish conferences for teenage leaders with her husband, Pete.

Worship & Creative

Ben Cantelon

Ben is originally from Canada, and is now the worship director for Soul Survivor church in Watford, where he heads up the worship, as well as leading worship at a number of festivals and events. Ben's first studio recording was released last summer.

Sam Hargreaves

Sam runs engageworship.org with his wife, Sara - training and resourcing youth and young adults for innovative, creative worship. Their book How Would Jesus Lead Worship? is being published in February 2009. Sam also co-leads RESOUNDworship.org, a new worship song website, and works part-time as worship minister at St James, Hemingford Grey, in Cambridgeshire.

Steve Leach

DJ and producer Steve Leach lives and works in Bournemouth and has been involved in nightclub outreach work for over 8 years. Challenged by the dominance of acoustic guitar-led worship, Steve is passionate about exploring new ways of doing worship, church et al.

Matt Macaulay

Matt spent his teenage years learning the drums and guitar, and at the age of 18 moved to Sydney for two years to study at Hillsong International Leadership College. It was there that he began to write his own songs and lead other musicians in their craft. Matt is now back in the UK and has recently completed an album, As for Me.