Our Story

We exist to see God’s kingdom come in Cumbria as it is in heaven, playing our part by following Jesus, building Christian communities, and contending for revival.

At St. Aidan’s, we want the church to be a glimpse of God’s Kingdom: a community where people experience his love, discover hope in Jesus, and are empowered by his Spirit to live changed lives. We long to be a place where faith comes alive, and where people of all ages can encounter God and become part of his work of transformation in our region.

Our story began in 2023, when a small group gathered to pray and dream of a fresh move of God’s Spirit across the towns and villages along the A66 corridor. Since then, a new church and community has formed that gathers to worship, learn, and respond together, before scattering to live as his people in our homes, workplaces, schools and neighbourhoods.

We are convinced this is just the start. God is already on the move in Cumbria, and we would love to invite you to be part of the story he is writing here.

What we do

Our vision shapes the way we live. As we’ve prayed, gathered, and grown together, we believe God has called St. Aidan’s to focus on some specific ways of joining in with what he is doing.

  • Person kneeling on a prayer rug with hands resting on thighs, in a dimly lit setting.

    Following Jesus

    First and foremost, we want to be all about Jesus. To follow him means to be with him and become like him, to love him more deeply and experience his love for us, and to learn from him how to live in the world. Everything we do at St. Aidan’s – our Sundays, youth groups, Scattered Groups and children’s ministry – is aimed at helping one another to follow Jesus more and more each day.

  • Six sheep grazing on a grassy hillside at sunset with a winding road in the background.

    Building Christian community

    We believe the church is part of God’s good plan for the world: communities gathered in his name, seeking to live like Jesus, and in so doing, seeing his Kingdom come. At St. Aidan’s, we want to play our part by building, growing and encouraging Christian communities in the places God has put us, through local Scattered Groups and by planting and resourcing new churches, so that more people across Cumbria can encounter the good news of Jesus.

  • A group of people walking along a narrow path with bushes on each side, wearing warm clothing and hats, during a sunny day.

    Contending for Revival

    We believe God is at work bringing new life to people, churches and communities, and we long to see more of it. We want to be a church that prays expectantly, shares the good news of Jesus boldly, and joins in wherever we see God bringing hope, healing and transformation. We contend for revival because we long to see people encounter Jesus, lives changed by his Spirit, churches renewed, and God’s Kingdom increasingly visible across Cumbria.

How we do it

As we follow Jesus as a church, we have a particular set of values that define our way of living and acting, and that shape the choices that we make and the things we do together.

  • Gathered to scatter

    We believe in the value of gathering together regularly to encourage one another, tell stories of God‘s goodness and encounter God together. However, these gatherings are not our end goal, and we gather to be scattered back out into the world as salt and light to our communities.

  • Word and Spirit

    We are dependent upon the power and presence of God’s Spirit to guide and empower us in living for Jesus. As we go, we are confident that God is and has spoken to us through his Word, which we trust as God’s good and loving words to us.

  • Kingdom Generosity

    We are not about building our empire, but God’s Kingdom. To that end, we want to be defined as a community of generosity that joyfully gives away the abundance we have received from God to bless those around us, in and outside the church.

  • Intergenerational

    The good news about Jesus is for people of every age. We want to be a community where children, young people and adults all worship, grow and serve together. We believe that every generation has a part to play in following Jesus and shaping his church.

  • Telling a better story

    We believe the good news of Jesus tells a better story about God, ourselves and the world than the stories of fear, scarcity and hopelessness that so often surround us. We want to notice and celebrate what God is doing, speak hope where others see only impossibility, and creatively communicate the good news of his Kingdom in ways that people can understand and experience.

Why St. Aidan?

St. Aidan was an Irishman, sent from Scotland to share the good news about Jesus Christ with the north of England. He did this by travelling around, taking time to meet with people and lead them closer to their Saviour. As he went, he established communities of Christian faith to continue this mission across the North, forming disciples of Christ who would reach out in mission.

As a church, we share this sense of vision and calling with Aidan, whose name means ‘little fiery one’. We want, like him, to light spiritual fires across our region as we establish a family of Christian communities and share the good news about Jesus.

“See, I am doing a new thing!
    Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland.”

— Isaiah 43:19