The Life Exhibition in the West Midlands

Ros Wilshire is the Priest in Charge at St Stephen the Martyr, Willenhall, in the West Midlands. She’s been a passionate supporter since she first came across the Life exhibition in 2018. 

I first came across the Life exhibition when I was curate in Wolverhampton, and I volunteered as part of the congregation. I remember how brilliant it was and the children’s reaction. Then, about a year ago, I was reminded about the Life exhibition, so I brought the idea to our local ‘Churches Together’ meeting and played the promo video. Everybody was so enthusiastic about it: we never looked back, and the Life Exhibition came to Willenhall in June.

I took it to ‘Churches Together’ because I recognised from experience that it’s an excellent opportunity to bring Christians together to cooperate on a single mission project. You also need volunteers to help run it. It’s far better, too, to have lots of churches to advertise it in their church schools and other schools with whom they have contact.

There are numerous roles available for volunteers, ranging from prayer support to managing various areas of the exhibition. There’s also hospitality, as the children end up in the Life Café, so there’s a role there for people who may not feel so confident teaching children but are happy making drinks and giving out biscuits. That’s the great thing about Life – it suits different people with different skills.

I think churches jump at the opportunity – well, we certainly did – because we recognise how important it is to engage with our local schools, but we also recognise how difficult that can be. So, when something is offered that is professionally produced, comes with all the necessary training and resources, and enables churches with a heart for children’s work to get involved without having to do the actual production of the exhibition, it’s an absolute gift.

Schools jump at it because it aligns with the curriculum. The teachers take home lesson plans and have access to online resources. And, because it’s free! That sounds terrible, but resources are limited. Because the churches and Counties pay for it, they are getting something of such high quality without having to worry about the financial implications.

The children love it because it has a real ‘wow’ factor. The way it is set up, they only see the first section before entering the main exhibition; when they do, you can hear them take a breath. I don’t think they are expecting it to be so bright and colourful, and there is so much for them to engage with. And of course, there are tablets that all children love. There are also QR codes and music to listen to. The final story, which is about the death and resurrection of Jesus, is always the most popular. It’s in a dark tent and it’s very powerful. And of course, they like the biscuits at the end.

The Life Exhibition is excellent quality, but the majority of the work is taken out of your hands. You will need volunteers to help run the exhibition, but Counties has thought of everything from scripts and training videos for volunteers down to the paper and ink cartridges for printing the feedback sheets at the end. It can be daunting putting something on for the first time, but Kevin and the team at Life are there with you every step of the way. Jump in. It’s brilliant.

If you are interested in booking the Life exhibition visit the website here or contact Kevin Baldwin lifeexpo@countiesuk.org for more details.

The Life exhibition is a multi-media experience designed for primary school children that complements and works alongside existing RE teaching. The exhibition is often free to schools thanks to the sponsorship of local churches and Counties.

It is aimed at Year 5 & Year 6 pupils. Churches in a local community are provided with all the resources, equipment and training by Counties to enable them to invite their local Primary schools to visit; and church volunteers then work alongside school children each day.