Bournville

Join us for Meeting for Worship:

Sunday

10:30 AM - 11:30 AM

Meeting for worship is at 10.30 am every Sunday and is an hour long. As of February, for a trial period of six months, our meeting for worship will only be 45 minutes long and then followed a half an hour later by the business meeting. These will take place on the first Sunday of the month.

Friends can also join these Meetings online, if they prefer, using a Zoom link. This means it is a blended Meeting for Worship, with some of us in the Meeting House and some of us at home. On the last Sunday of every second month we have Alongside Meetings where those online and in the meeting house worship at the same time but separately. If you would like to join the meeting via Zoom: please drop us an email at bournville@ceaqm.org.uk

All are welcome.

Friends are welcome to stay after Meeting for conversation. For those who would like to, we offer tea and coffee in the small meeting room.

Sometimes we have the occasional study session starting at 12:00 noon which may last up to an hour.

The Life of our Meeting

How the Truth has prospered at Bournville Meeting

Meetings for Worship

A few Friends do take advantage of the “Visit another meeting Sunday”. This often coincides with our Alongside meetings: those in the meeting house, and those online, worship at the same time, but alongside each other rather than together.

In September a same sex meeting for marriage was held at the meeting house.

Our Christmas Day meeting for worship of readings and carols continues to be appreciated. Last year forty-nine Friends from a number of meetings attended.

Meetings for Learning

Once a month we have a shared lunch after meeting for worship. Often this follows one of our Friends sharing their spiritual journey – these are well attended and provide a good way of building a stronger sense of community. In February we had a session on spoken ministry.

Our Awayday was held in June at Stourbridge Meeting House. Thirteen Friends attended the day. We explored the question: “What does deep hope look like for Quakers in 2024?” Friends found the experience rewarding and challenging. We were touched by the generous approach of Stourbridge Friends and felt it was a warm expression of Quaker community.

We are exploring chapter two in Quaker Faith & Practice along with additional material in the Friend. There are six sessions and three groups. The sessions will take the form of worship sharing and discussion.

Spiritual Journey Groups

Our spiritual journey group ‘the Soup Group’ continues with new participants.

Events

An enjoyable Quiz Night was arranged in February which was attended by 28 people from various local meetings. It raised £223 for a Quaker-led organization supporting asylum seekers – Lifeline Options.

Last summer our day outing to Harvington Hall was attended by ten people who said that they found it a rewarding experience and a good opportunity for nurturing friendships.

We very much enjoyed in participating in Fox 400 Pilgrimage followed by the concert called “Nudges & Winks”.

There have been Bournville Heritage Open Days on the second Saturday of September. Last year was a very busy one, with over 950 people visiting the meeting house. There were photos of the meeting house in different times, a Quaker Service Memorial Exhibition, and lots of stimulating conversations with people.

The Bournville Christmas Festival is a fun equivalent of the Summer Festival and includes the switching on of the lights at 5.00 pm. We open as a ‘quiet space’; display the entries for a children’s Christmas card competition and have a stall of books and sundries in aid of the Quaker Christmas Parcel Appeal.

Accessibility

There is a ramp up to the entrance and there are accessible toilet facilities in the Meeting House.

We will continue to ensure that Bournville Meeting is a Covid safe environment.

Children’s Meeting

We do not have a regular Children’s Meeting but have all the facilities to offer visiting families a friendly reception. We have books, games and toys for all ages and several Members who are DBS checked and willing to host a session with children and usually one of their carers.

Getting here:

By bus: No. 11 and 27 bus routes stop outside the Meeting House at the junction with Linden Road and Woodbrooke Road.

By train: Get a local train out to Bournville station (Cross City Line), half a mile from the Meeting House and then walk up or get a 27 bus.

By car: Limited car parking on site with extra parking alongside Bournville Green. We provide safe storage for those on bikes.

Room Hire:

The Meeting House is used during the week by many community groups for a variety of activities. Information can be obtained from the Bookings Secretary at bqmroombookings@gmail.com or 0121 471 2155. See images below of the different rooms that are available.