Interview by Nicky Andrews. Photos by Ellie C. & Garret N.

Calling parents of teens and youth leaders! Have you heard of TeenStreet? TeenStreet is OM’s growing international discipleship movement for 13-17 year-olds who want to live as Jesus-followers all year round.

Our UK TeenStreet summer event is coming up fast, from 2^nd - 8^th August 2025! We’d love to welcome your teens and their leaders to beautiful Capernwray Hall near the Lake District, for an amazing week of faith, friendship and fun with over 100 other teens from all round the UK and beyond. But sign up soon - deadline is 30th June!

Want to know more? Visit https://teenstreet.uk/teen-info/  but here Lydia Skirton, Coordinator for the UK, answers some FAQs.

 

Q. Please explain the TeenStreet concept.

A. TeenStreet is a themed discipleship programme for teens running across the academic year, kick-started by our summer event. For 2025, our theme is ‘Seven’ – what Jesus says to the seven churches in the Book of Revelation and how, as believers, that impacts all our lives today.  At the summer event, daily worship and teaching feeds into small group sharing, with seminars and workshops too, and loads of time for building friendships and having lots of fun! In everything we promote three core values: ‘Have fun, Go deep, Be bold.’ We’re delighted to host TeenStreet in the UK for the fourth time and see how previous participants, now 18 or 19, are coming back to volunteer and help us run things!

 

Q. Can you unpack those Core Values some more?

A. Watching screens may provide ‘entertainment’ but can never give ‘fun’ - the rich experience and sheer enjoyment of actually being together, interacting, building friendships with peers and trusted adults. ‘Going deep’  can happen because teens have space and safety to share their lives in small groups (same gender) with an adult Small Group Leader. Everyone is discipled, and disciples others in turn. ‘Being bold’ results when young people discover their own passions and giftings and get envisioned to reach out to those around them.

A real TeenStreet distinctive, being part of OM, is our missional focus, like our missions night full of inspiration and testimonies.

Some teens are inspired to go on outreach in central Europe through our Teens in Mission initiative, or get involved at a later age, when God reminds them of the stories they heard at TeenStreet years earlier. That’s so exciting!

 

Q. You said it’s a year-round programme?

A. We want to share an ongoing journey with churches, and for their youth groups to be journeying with their teens throughout the year. One way is through TeenStreet Connect events, which are regional days hosted by local partner churches, where young people can reconnect with each other and TeenStreet staff like me, the speakers and worship leaders they met in the summer. Connect events usually continue exploring the year’s theme but there’s flexibility built in, so Connect could host an outreach event, for instance. Plus we have Bible study resources for weekly use which youth leaders can adapt to suit the make-up of their group, and active TeenStreet social media accounts.

What I love about all this is how teens experience God not just at a summer event, with the risk of a spiritual high that soon fizzles out back at school, but they can continue growing and being encouraged in their faith all year round.

 

Q. Where’s your summer event?

A. We’re thrilled that Capernwray Hall are hosting us again this year and helping us staff our programme. It’s a fantastic facility – a mission-focused international Bible school with whom OM has a growing partnership. It’s in easy reach of the M6 motorway in north Lancashire, with great accommodation, and camping options too, and the grounds are amazing. There’s equipment for different sports, zip lines, pedal cars, a swimming pool…. I believe they've got canoes as well this year!

 

Q. Do you get lots of repeat-participants? And is there a real mix of teens coming?

A. Absolutely! We often find that teens come year after year, and then start volunteering with us when they reach 18. But each year there are lots of new people too, and some younger ones who watched their older siblings participate, and want to come too, now they’re old enough. And it’s great to see increasing numbers of boys signing up!

Capernwray’s northern location gives much better accessibility to youth from Scotland and Northern Ireland so that’s a real plus. Great too that some of the largest youth groups coming repeatedly are from Chinese, Turkish and Nepali-majority churches. Teens from mainland Europe who are staying at Capernwray over the summer will also join in, and a girl from the Outer Hebrides who came last year, and this year is bringing all her sisters and cousins!

 

Q. Any other favourite highlights Lydia?

A. I have to mention our ‘colour run’!  It’s a big feature of what we call RAG – ‘Raise And Give’. Everyone runs laps of a field wearing white t-shirts and gets coloured powder chucked on them, making amazing effects! This year we’ve also got an afternoon of ‘fairground’ stuff, maybe even a ‘dunk tank’! It’s all about raising sponsorship for a project and this year we want to support partner churches in Italy so they can help fund kids go to TeenStreet’s Europe event, or go on short-term outreaches, and provide New Testaments in contemporary Italian that are engaging and relevant for young people, with eye-catching designs and interactive content. Our teens are really inspired when they realise they can make a difference in other people’s lives!

 

Q. Any last words for parents and youth leaders?

A. Do visit our dedicated website https://teenstreet.uk/teen-info/ to see more of what TeenStreet is all about, and all the practical things. We can’t wait to welcome you and your teens this August, and journey with them into 2026 and beyond!

Visit teenstreet's website