The message of Christmas is everlasting – but the ways it is celebrated can change and at St Mark’s Church, Upper Hale, things look set to get messy this December.

With its elements of food, crafts and stories ‘Messy Church’ was established a decade ago to help make church more fun and accessible for families who might not ordinarily go to church – and the monthly Messy Church services at St Mark’s set up in the spring are already proving popular.

Alongside the traditional services in the Parish including the Carol Services, the Crib Services and the Midnight Mass services, this year for the first time there will be a Messy Christmas on Thursday 11 December at 3:30pm at St Mark’s Church.

And to make sure local residents don’t miss out on the opportunity to attend a service of their choice the parish will be delivering its own Christmas card to all of the 5,600 homes in the parish listing all the services.

Messy Church team leader Alison Stickland said: “Without giving too much away there will be lots of cotton wool, glitter, sticking and colouring with some seasonal cake and biscuit decorating! As well as food for thought we promise a seasonal tea, with sandwiches and jelly for little ones and adults alike. Christmas is a time to bring people together, everyone is welcome, we would love to see new faces – do come and join in the celebrations.”

Parish Priest the Revd Lesley Crawley said: “We are delighted that Messy Church has become so popular, with 40-50 people now coming along each month, aged 0 to 70. We have an amazing team of volunteers who have caught the spirit of Messy Church and indeed many of them will be out and about posting the Christmas cards in the coming weeks. Do say hello and ask them about any of our services!”

St Mark’s Church is in Alma Lane, GU9 0LT.