“The Lord will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring. Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities. Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls and a restorer of homes.” Isaiah 58 v 11 – 12 NLT

We’ve chosen these verses as the foundational scriptures for our very first Rooted to Flourish conference as they encapsulate so much of the vision and journey of Home Education. It can feel like we are continually stepping out into uncharted territory and we need God’s guidance. The daily demands are tough and we can easily run dry on our own resources and need to be filled afresh with God’s Spirit and reminded of His promises to us in His Word.

While the cost can feel high, the vision is spectacular! We are building up the foundations of the next generation. We are raising up the leaders, the preachers, the mums and dads, the business entrepreneurs and the intercessors who will influence the church and nation in the decades to come.

It’s a high calling, and therefore not an easy one. So, whether you are home educating or considering it, come and join us on 30 May. It will be a day of fellowship and friendship, of teaching and worship; a time to be restored, refreshed and re-inspired.

Registration is below. We have a limited number of spaces available, so do book early to make sure you can be there!

Enjoy browsing the website. We’ll be adding more information here in the coming weeks but feel free to contact mollyashtonresources@gmail.com if you have any queries.

We’re excited about our inaugural Rooted to Flourish conference and we hope you can be there. We look forward to meeting you.

May God bless you and your family,

The RtF team

• Programme
  • Doors open 9:30am with the day finishing at 3:00pm but our doors won’t close until 4:00pm. In that hour you’re welcome to stay for more tea, cake and connection or explore the local area… whatever restores your soul the best!
• On the Day:
  • 9:30 – Doors open, registration, a chance to visit the exhibitors and the creative prayer table
  • 10:00 – Welcome and Worship
  • 10:20 – Key Note Talk – Rev Richard Matcham
  • 10:45 – Tea and Coffee
  • 11:15 – Children’s Well-being and Schools Bill – Amanda King
  • 11:30 – Seminars
  • 12:15 – Lunch followed by tea/coffee, exhibitors exhibiting and the creative prayer table
  • 1:15 – Seminars
  • 2:00 – Prayers
  • 2:30 – Worship
  • 2:40 – Closing Comments – Molly Ashton
  • 3:00 – Tea and Cake, exhibitors and creative prayer table
  • 4:00 – Finish
• Seminars
  • On the day we’re hoping to offer the following seminars:
    • Home Educating Through the Younger Years – Deborah Arnold
      • Home education with babes in arms, mischievous toddlers, personal illness and a very tight budget. Yet through it all the Lord has been faithful as He “gently leads those that are with young.” Isiah 40 v 11
    • Navigating the Exam Years – Mary Ferguson and Kirstine Hunnisett
      • The exam years can feel quite daunting! In this seminar Mary and Kirstine will be talking a bit about different options for exams (including a brief outline of the American system), their own experiences and tips for the exam season and answering any questions you may have. Between them they have 9 children ages 12-24 who have taken GCSEs and gone on to do various things including A-levels and Degrees.
    • Resources: Choosing the Best Fit for Your Family – Hazel Leithall
      • With so many resources available for Home Educators, how do you choose which ones to use? This seminar will explore various factors to consider, as well as sharing examples of available options and some tips from experience. Most of all, this seminar is designed to equip you to confidently make your own choices about the best fit for your family.
    • The Blessings and Challenges of Additional Needs – Molly Ashton and Jenny Partridge
      • Come and join us for an interactive seminar where we will address some of the challenges and opportunities unique to this journey, discuss strategies to enable times of restoration and avoid burnout and learn a little about the game-changing process of finding your child’s unique sensory thumb print.
• Food
  • There will be hot drinks and cake provided (feel free to bring your favourite insulated mug so you can cradle a drink throughout!) We suggest you bring your own lunch or pick up something delicious from the bakery, butcher or Tesco in Cheddar.
• Money Matters
  • We are keen this is open to every woman who would like to come. We’ve therefore decided not to charge, but to ask for donations as you’re able. Our suggestion is £10; but for some this may not be possible while others may be able to give slightly more. We won’t be taking digital transfers, so will be bringing back the old days of cash only! There’s a cash point in Cheddar – a five minute walk from the church – if needed, and we’ll have donation boxes on the day. We thank God for the resources He has poured out and are so glad we can share them out between us.
• Registration – REGISTER HERE
  • It would be helpful to know a little bit about where you are on your Home Ed journey, so if you’re happy to do so, please fill in the questionnaire. Please do also indicate your two seminar choices. While we’re not asking for payment with registration, spaces are limited and we will fine tune our planning around those who are coming. We ask, therefore, that if at the last minute you’re not able to come, you either pass your space on to someone else or let us know so we can offer it to another lady. Thank you.
• Directions and Parking
  • The address is: Cheddar Baptist Church, Lower North Street, Cheddar, Somerset BS27 3HA. The church doesn’t have a car park but there is plenty of roadside parking within a radius of a five minute walk. Try the following roads: Lower North Street, The Hayes, Hannah Moore Close, Norville Lane or Wellington Place. There are single yellow lines outside the church for blue badge holders.
• Exhibitors
  • We have some wonderful exhibitors bringing informative, inspiring and beautiful resources for you to browse. See the individual stands for methods of payment if applicable.
    • Sante Sensory Health
    • CHESS
    • Dumb Ox Learning
    • I am so many things
  • Books Stall – Books at conference discount. Payable by cash or bank transfer.
    • Another Way to Learn? Discovering the Beauty of Home Education
    • Issacher Eyes
• Speakers
  • Rev Richard Matcham is the pastor of Taunton Baptist Church. Formerly he was a missionary with Youth With A Mission (YWAM), teaching and discipling students in Biblical Studies in Africa and the Middle East. He has a Master’s Degree in Theology and Mission from Bristol Baptist College and annually delivers teaching for theology students and missionaries in Biblical Studies and doctrine, following the maxim by St Jerome, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” He is a grandfather to eight, father of four and husband of one. He blogs at “Gralefrit Theology”.
  • Deborah Arnold is a Home-Educating mum and pastor’s wife with four daughters aged 8 to 13. They have been Home Educating for 7 years.
  • Mary Ferguson Home-Educated her 5 children up until sixth form with only the youngest (15) still learning at home. She has co-led a Home-Ed Co-op for the last 10 years or so and keeps busy with various volunteering roles, fitting in as much crochet, chat and cake along the way as she can! Currently thinking about what the next season will look like once the final pupil has graduated!
  • Kirstine Hunnisett has spent the last 17 years Home Educating her four children in North Bristol, two of whom are still at home. She also supports her husband, Paul, as he lives with chronic illness. Kirstine loves participating in the life of her local church, climbing with her kids, listening to live music and reading aloud to anyone who will listen!
  • Hazel Leithall is mum to 3 boys and a girl, ranging from 14 to 9. Some of her favourite parts of Home Education have been history trips to Welsh castles and reading aloud, everything from fun picture books to classic children’s novels. When she’s not busy feeding her hungry brood she enjoys curling up with a good book and a cuppa, baking cakes or doing something sporty with her family.
  • Jenny Partridge is married to Matt and they have five children, who they have been Home Educating together for the past twenty years. Their eldest is now 23 and their youngest 11. Through the twists and turns of family life, God has been so faithful and made a way. Before becoming a Home Educating mum Jenny trained as an Occupational Therapist working with adults and older people, but her greatest learning has taken place as she has raised and Home Educated her own children. When there are learning and behavioural challenges, the importance of understanding each child’s unique sensory thumb print can make all the difference in knowing how to parent and teach them. Jenny has come to see and value the unique opportunity we have as Home Educating parents to create a routine and environment that encourages our children to thrive, feel calmer and more confident.
  • Molly Ashton is a wife, mother of four adult/teen children and long time Home Educator. She compiled Another Way to Learn – Discovering the Beauty of Home Education, and the recently released Issacher Eyes, blogs at Mothering through the Seasons and is a very part-time shadow writer/copy editor. She has insight into the challenges of parenting children with additional needs and is an advocate for finding joy in the mundane and peace amidst the mess. She is rooted in the beauty and rhythms of the countryside in which her family live in a quest to become ever more self sufficient.