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Nina Tite St Augustine’s, Highbury, London

During my last year at university I felt that God was calling me to serve others but I didn’t know what direction this would take. I applied to Careforce because I felt that this year could offer me a chance to explore God’s will. My placement is a church in Highbury which enables me to work with children from 0-18 through mums and toddlers groups, youth groups, Sunday schools, talks in secondary schools on relationships and even help teach English at a local refugee and asylum centre - a completely varied mix of activities! If you feel called to serve God and others around you but are not sure how to go about it in this corporate world that we live in, Careforce offers a starting point. Through the support and placements it provides, a year with Careforce enables you to grow in love and in grace to serve God and despite challenges that you may face, I would recommend it to anyone.

Stephen Strong St John’s, Ealing

In my last year of school I began to feel God call me to evangelism, and as people around me were making plans for their futures and applying for university I was holding back because I was sure that was not what God was calling me to do. It was a very stressful period going against the norm! I spent hours on the internet looking at various organisations but none of them seemed to be right. My family told me of Careforce and as I read through their website I felt that God was strongly calling me to do this, so I applied, had a interview and was placed at St Johns in West London. I have loved my year so far and I am encouraged by the numbers of young people and their spiritual growth. The church has a heart for God and His work and the staff team are a great support and welcomed me right away. Careforce and my placement have helped me grow deeper in my relationship with God, and I would recommend it to anyone.

Nicola Mann Mitcham Lane Baptist Church, Streatham

At the end of August I found myself in a scary place! Having had my university place deferred unexpectedly until the following September, I suddenly had a whole year to fill! I went to the Greenbelt festival feeling pretty disheartened that I had not yet found anything suitable to do in my gap year. I visited the big tent, and simply prayed ‘Lord, I’m giving this year to you, Please show me what you will have me do!’ It was there that I came across the Careforce stand! I just knew that this was what God wanted me to do and it was the way I was to serve Him this year. I then whizzed home to complete the application form on Wednesday, before the deadline on the Friday!! All went well and the next week I was told I was off to Streatham, South West London! (Not exactly the beach resort I originally thought my gap year would be spent in!) However I absolutely love my placement as a youth worker; God has blessed me with some brilliant youth and leaders, a lovely Jamaican lady to live with (awesome food!), a great church with so much vision and sense of community and some cracking friends. There have been many times where I have been thrown in the deep end and totally out of my comfort zone (some tears!), doing things I thought were for much more ‘mature’ Christians and I wondered how I was going to cope. But its those times that have been the best and I have learnt so much from them, and I’m slowly being changed which is so exciting!

Tim Bevington St Alban’s, Gateshead

I’ve known about Careforce and the work they do for many years due to the fact that my home Church have had a number of volunteers in the past. For the last 4 or 5 years I have wanted to be a Primary School teacher, despite the fact that I have also wanted to get out of the education system and have a break before university! Careforce has given me the opportunity not only to give a year to serving God, but also to gain valuable experience for teaching by going into local schools to assist teachers and do assemblies. Whether your gifts lie with children, youth or adults; if it’s a year that you know God wants you to do then a suitable placement will be found.

Isabelle Smedley Redwoods Caring Foundation, Edinburgh

I finished university with 101 different ideas of what to do with my life- knowing only that I wanted to serve God and others. I had heard of Careforce and knew that in this they had the same vision as me, so I decided to give it a go. I was placed with Redwoods Caring Foundation, which works with people with learning difficulties. I work in the respite care centre, where people come to stay for a few days/weeks several times a year, as a break for them and their carers. I do a lot of the things a parent would do: looking after people, taking them on trips and playing games with them, as well as doing some cooking, cleaning and personal care, and of course praying for them. I had no idea whether I would be able to do all this, but I am learning lots, enjoying it, and really confident that God has put me in exactly the right placement. Who knows, maybe He’s even giving me a few hints about my future too?!

Nathan Wilson St Boniface, Quinton, Birmingham

When everybody else was thinking about university I was wondering what I could do that wasn’t university! I was looking at what I might do after A-levels in the summer before my last year at school when somebody mentioned Careforce to me; I straight away realised that this is what I wanted to do for the next year and my application went in quite soon afterwards. 2 placements which were suggested to me weren’t right, and this made me begin to worry that Careforce wasn’t for me, and what was I going to do after school had finished. However, I really felt that God was saying stick with it and the whole application process taught me to rely on God so much more. I ended up at St Boniface, Quinton; this placement has been great for me as it has really broadened my horizons and enabled me to get involved in things I wouldn’t have had the courage to do before. I spend my time doing youth, children’s and schools work and work with under 5’s. I am really enjoying all that my placement has to offer me and it is great to offer my time to a community and to God for a year.