As Soul Children UK, we want to reach young people through music they can relate to and introduce them to a lifelong relationship with Jesus.

Many young people today feel isolated and alone and are crying out for a healthy, consistent community. Many spend considerable amounts of time on screens and in virtual settings. With little or no face-to-face interaction they can easily feel unseen and uncared for. As Christians, we know that the majority are also unchurched and don't know Jesus.

That's why Soul Children (UK) exists. Founded by well-known Christian singer/songwriter Chip Kendall, Soul Children (UK) is a family of youth gospel choirs (10-16 year olds) who gather regularly, in their community, to sing and to be family together. Our vision is to reach young people through music they can relate to and introduce them to a lifelong relationship with Jesus. We long to see their lives transformed, and for them to become the agents of positive change.

Our goal is that everything we do will be focused on Jesus and so we seek honest conversations about our Christian faith, in a safe and natural way, using language and music that is relevant for young people. We want each individual to be proud of what they are joining, and to grow in their musical ability and personal development. Each choir has access to a common repertoire of high-quality music to ensure consistency and relevance. Each choir is also able to use other songs that fit the ethos and values of Soul Children. We encourage choirs to strive for excellence but recognise not everyone has to be the best singer in the world to join!

Our desire is that Soul Children Choirs will be a place for building great relationships and to generously cheer each other on, both in their own choir and in the wider global Soul Children family. This social pillar is vital, as it shapes the framework for all that the choirs do together: at each rehearsal; in concert; and on national and international trips.

In 2022, we partnered with Festival Manchester to recruit and train a choir of over 500 young people to perform at the festival in July. We are thankful to the festival for funding much of this work and, as a legacy, at least 4 of the 7 local choirs we now have registered came from this partnership – with several more going through the enquiry/investigation stage, most of whom we expect to ‘onboard’ during 2023.

Our hope is that, through this work we will see a total of 15 local choirs by the end of 2023.

Choirs will have at least 15 members and so we will reach around 225 young people – and also have contact with their parents.