Peak Circuit News – 16th April 2026
Peak Circuit News: 16 April 2026
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Peak Wesley Way at Cliff Festival
Cliff Festival will, as usual, be happening in the heart of our Circuit over the late May bank holiday weekend (22 – 25 May). Peak Welsey Way will be part of the Festival on Monday 25 May. We will be hosting an information stall in the festival market place and will be leading a two hour mini-pilgrimage along Baslow Edge to Baslow chapel, returning along the valley. We would very much appreciate a few volunteers to join us in running the stall, walking the pilgrimage, or putting the kettle on in Baslow.
If you've not been to Cliff Festival before, this is an excellent way to taste and see. Adult day tickets are usually £22, but Peak Wesley Way volunteers can come for free as contributors. Email info@peakwesleyway.com or phone Alex on 07864 351 609 for more information or offers of support.
Bakewell area Refugee & Asylum Seeker Network
Methodist members outside the Bakewell area may not know of the activities of this well-established initiative of the Christian churches in Bakewell, hence this article.
The Bakewell area Refugee and Asylum Seeker network was formed ten years ago in 2016 on the initiative of the Bakewell Churches Together group. Churches Together comprised both clergy and lay people from Bakewell Methodist Church, All Saints C od E,, the Society of Friends and the Catholic Church in Bakewell. The refugee network was inspired and led by Methodist Deacon David Clark.
At the beginning the network consisted of three groups, all of which included members from Bakewell Methodist Church: a Language group teaching English to refugees in Sheffield, a Hospitality group which laid on hospitality days for refugees living in Sheffield or Derby, an Advocacy Group tasked with providing accurate information and comment on the plight of refugees through various events (e.g. decorating a ‘refugee’ tree for the parish church’s annual Xmas Tree Festival) and through regularly writing for a Newsletter edited by David Clark. The Newsletter comprises a mailing list of about 80 individuals and groups who have an interest in the plight of refugees. David was also working to involve schools in the project before, sadly, he died in 2023.
Ten years on from 2016, of course, we are all ten years older, and health problems have affected many of us. For this reason the Language group has gradually lost its members over the years, after making dedicated weekly visits to refugees in Sheffield. The Advocacy group, comprising representatives from the Society of Friends, and the Anglican and Methodist churches, still meets regularly but, having continued to sustain the Newsletter since David died, its main role now is to keep the wider network in touch with any refugee-related events taking place locally, such as Clothing Collections or Hospitality Days.
Happily the Hospitality group, which has been extremely successful over the years, has recently managed to renew its leadership and helpers. It is a demanding initiative since each Hospitality day costs about £300 to run (mainly for the cost of transport), and needs at least 10 helpers, to prepare lunch and entertain the visitors. This year two Hospitality days are planned, for Saturday May 9th and Saturday July 11th. About 20 refugees will arrive mid-morning from Derby for a welcome and activities at the Friends Meeting House. At lunchtime they will be provided with a home-cooked, sit-down lunch in the next-door Methodist Wesley Hall before returning to the Meeting House for an afternoon of entertainment and further activities such as games, craftwork, football or taken to visit local amenities such as the Bakewell museum. The day finishes at about 4.00 pm when the visitors return to Derby. Refugees who have been on such days over the last 10 years speak of them as particularly happy and memorable occasions.
As a network we continue to see our mailing list as a precious resource and if any readers of this article would like to be put on the mailing list for news of events or would like to contribute in any way (we could always do with more volunteers for the Hospitality Days for example), please email Sue Clark (sueclark588@gmail.com).
Peak Wesley Way – appeal for board games
Do you have any board games you do no longer need? The Peak Wesley Way team are on the hunt for board games to put in each of the five PWW chapels to help pilgrims pass the evenings.
Please NO jigsaws thank you – just games which can be played in an evening and then put back in the box for the Pilgrims who follow.
Please email the Circuit Administrator (admin@peakmethodistcircuit.org) so collection can be arranged. Thank you!
Walking the Peak Wesley Way to raise funds for Africa’s Gift
Thursday May 14- Sunday May 17 2026
This is a pilgrimage led by Faye Ramsey Smith ( Hope Walking) and Ken Dunn ( Africa's Gift) to raise funds for Eco Cookbags.
Details here: https://hopewalking.co.uk/peak-wesley-way-charity-challenge
April is ‘Pilgrimage Month’ at Hathersage Methodist Church
"When April with its showers sweet with fruit
The drought of March has pierced to the root...
Then do folk long to go on pilgrimage."
(Opening lines of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales)
According to Chaucer, April was the time of year to set off on a pilgrimage. April 2026 also marks two years since the launch of the Peak Wesley Way, a six-day walking pilgrimage from Matlock to Edale, with overnight stops in Methodist chapels overnight. The Peak Wesley Way has attracted lots of interest in its first two years and the route is welcoming its 200th pilgrim this April.
Hathersage Methodist Church is one of the overnight stops on the Peak Wesley Way, and the church is marking the April milestone with a celebration of pilgrimage throughout the month. There are pilgrimage-themed books to browse and buy in the church's second-hand bookshop, displays in the church about the Peak Wesley Way and other contemporary pilgrimages, and a range of themed activities for visitors to join in with. The church and bookshop are open daily 9am to 5pm.
www.peakwesleyway.com
Trying out new approaches for Easter
Hathersage Methodist Church tried out some new service formats to mark Easter this year. During Holy week we held a short 15-minute reflective service each day at midday, based around a different 'Instrument of the Passion' each day. On Easter morning we had an early morning communion service in the Millennium Garden next to the church. Then in our children's Sunday Club the children decorated 'He is Risen' biscuits to share with the congregation after the service. It was good to try new things, and we were glad to welcome visitors to our different services this Easter.
Advanced Safeguarding Training
A reminder about the face-to-face training sessions which is taking place this Saturday 4 July – Bakewell Methodist Church.
Please note that registrations close 20 days before the event date to allow enough time to receive and complete the preparation material before attending the core session.
There needs to be a minimum of 15 people registered for the session to take place, so please do encourage those in your churches who need to do this training to book early. https://25CSSAdvanced.eventbrite.co.uk
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