Vision
the fishermen's chapel:
diving into faith, surfing culture, fishing for justice
open and generous like the sea
respecting creation and its Creator
keeping an eye to God and an eye to the cultural horizon
providing calm amidst the storms of life
filling our sails with the breath of God
anchoring our hope in Jesus
praying that all will find their way safely home
inviting all to become fishers of women and men

Introduction
In 2014 New Road Methodist Church was relaunched as The Fishermen's Chapel,a music, arts and community-based mission initiative aiming to connect with the flourishing arts scene in the Leighand Southend area.
The Fishermen's Chapel is working towards providing:

• an intimate performance and exhibition venue
• a hub for local arts activities
• a unique events and meeting venue – for creative worship, day conferences, concerts, exhibitions, rehearsals, retreats, weddings and parties
• a space for contemplation, prayer and inspiration

Objectives

• To provide a popular, affordable, safe and enjoyable arts and live music venue with facilities to provide quality refreshments.
• To provide an outlet and community-base for local talent, especially young start-up bands, musicians, choirs and artists.
• To establish relationships with numerous people through accessible events and activities and invite them to explore issues of life and faith.
• To connect people with existing congregations where appropriate but to also be open to the potential of establishing new faith communities atthe venue.
• To continue proactive and positive relationships with the 3rd Chalkwell Bay Sea Scouts offering a relevant pattern for helping them explore faith.

Opportunity
The opportunity is to help New Road Methodist Church transition from a faithful yet ageing and declining congregation to a new creative, mission-focussedinitiative. The opportunity is for the faithful members of New Road to leave a legacy that might enable new generations of people to exploreissues of life and faith.