Skegness Line up

Joanna is a presenter, actress and author of the children's book 'What's Up: 30 encouragements to fuel your faith'. She is best known for her role as a presenter on CBeebies and is passionate about creativity and her faith in Jesus. Joanna is thrilled to be hosting Big Start again this year!

Marie is an author, speaker, and Senior Relationship Manager for Alpha UK. Passionate about culture and evangelism, she is driven to see the national church grow, congregations equipped to share their faith and those who make decisions welcomed and discipled in the local church.

Olivia is the executive director for the Elim Pentecostal Church having previously worked in senior leadership positions in the NHS. She is also associate pastor of Crosspoint Church, a church plant based in north Birmingham and has a passion for sharing God’s word creatively (lightly sprinkled with a little humour). Olivia is a member of the board of Essential Christian, the parent charity of Spring Harvest.

Luke Aylen is a priest, author, theologian and campervan enthusiast currently ministering from Hilfield Friary in Dorset. His background includes a range of creative work in video and stage, and several years as Spring Harvest's creative coordinator.

Sola uses creative arts to help people engage in discussions about identity, race/racism and child criminal exploitation. He is also an actor, dancer and movement director and loves to expound the Bible and help people to grow in evangelism. Sola is married to Sophie and they have two children.

Nora Bart is a Dutch artist living and writing in the UK. She released her first single in 2020 but has been a life long songwriter. Nora’s music reaches people’s hearts, both the aching and joyful. Through melody and honest lyrics she always aims to connect with her audience.

Sarah is currently Associate Vicar & Lead Pastor at Christ the King in Kettering. She has a passion for intergenerational ministry and discipleship of young people. She loves meeting new people, being outdoors and eating good food!

Tarn is the CEO of the national fostering and adoption charity, Home for Good and also an adoptive mum to two incredible boys. Previously Tarn (as affectionately known) was interim CEO at CapitalMass compiling the next ten-year strategy for social action across the Diocese of London. She is a seasoned public speaker, author and executive coach and has 20 years of ministerial experience as well as a background working in FTSE100 companies. 

Raff was born and raised in Rio de Janeiro and arrived in the UK at 17.  After a troubled upbringing he battled drug addiction and a life in crime. Today Raff is a recovering addict, sober for a decade and an ordained Priest with the Church of England.  Based at a church in East London, he runs Our Father's House Recovery Ministry which supports addicts and alcoholics. He will be running Our Father's House sessions at Skegness each morning.

Cheeky Pandas create free resources to encourage children in their faith, and to help them get excited about the Bible and prayer. Their vision is to see children and families develop a beautiful life-long relationship with God… with some panda fun along the way! Churches and schools around the world are using the songs and videos in their services and assemblies, while parents can directly download resources for their children at home.

The will share a fun-filled matinee on Wednesday afternoon in Skegness!

Andy is the co-founder and CEO of the global bereavement charity, The Mariposa Trust, and business leader. He is passionate about guiding people through their grief journey, and helping churches and leaders to compassionately care for their staff and congregations. Andy has been a speaker for over 30 years.

Zoe is an award winning charity CEO, business leader, best-selling author, TV host and leading grief expert. In addition, she co-chaired and authored the ground breaking 'Pregnancy Loss Review' on behalf of the government, and is responsible for the new 'Certificates of Loss' for all baby loss.

With over 25 years’ experience in the Christian music industry working with well-known artists and songwriters, Jenny manages the UK office of CCLI, a global company whose headquarters is in the US.

Count Everyone In offer a warm welcome to everyone at the daily celebrations, especially if you’re an adult with a learning disability. What can you expect? Fun, friendship and a faith filled programme. There will be drama, flags, signing, prayer, Bible teaching and laughter but also awesome God-filled silences as the Holy Spirit moves among us.

At both Minehead and Skegness there will be morning Celebrations and afternoon workshops, including one on Makaton.

Sarah will be leading the 5-7 programme in Skegness. She began her working life as a primary school teacher in Kent, but soon after felt called into children’s work. Since then she has worked as a schools worker for different Christian trusts including 5 years as Children Worldwide’s development worker. Sarah now lives in the Midlands and works full time for Knowle Parish Church as their children’s minister.

Dave Bell is husband to Sarah and dad to four miracle children. He is an international worship leader, speaker, songwriter and worship pastor at Alive Church, Lincoln. Dave has an incredible testimony of healing and is relentless in his pursuit of sharing the gospel in order to see breakthrough in peoples lives.

Dave will be leading worship in the Unplugged Celebration each evening.

Martin Dickson, Director of Church Relationships at Safe Families and Home for Good, holds strategic oversight for the organisation’s work with 7000+ UK churches and Christian volunteers. A social entrepreneur and strategic leader with 20 years experience in senior leadership, Martin brings a unique blend of faith, vision, passion, and humour. He is deeply passionate about releasing potential in people, places and particularly the church. He is a gifted communicator known for his use of powerful storytelling.

Alex leads the ongoing work and development of the UK charity, Faith in Later Life. She is passionate and experienced in inspiring and equipping people for the opportunities and challenges of later life, and in helping them know Jesus more deeply or for the first time. Alex has three grown up sons, and lives in the West Country.

Kate has been working with Care for the Family since 2012, initially as a volunteer running their parenting courses in her community, before joining their Community Engagement Team and representing the charity in London. She supports a variety of individuals and organisations working with families, including churches, schools, prisons and charities. Kate is passionate about supporting parents through the emotional rollercoaster of parenting. Kate lives in London with her husband and two teenage daughters.

Janet is our disability consultant in Skegness. She is Mission Programmes Manager for Through the Roof and has served Spring Harvest for many years.

If you would like to speak to her at any point during the event, please visit the Spring Harvest Stand in the Skyline and they'll put you in touch.

Leon is the Lead pastor of Lifecentral Church, a multi-site church based in Halesowen. He is also part of Elim’s regional team and one of founders of the Further Faster Network, helping churches to grow by reaching people currently not engaged with church.

Leon will be the Bible Teacher in Skegness, and hosting in the Gathering Celebration in Minehead.

Lou Fellingham is an internationally known worship leader, eleven albums in to a firmly-established ministry. She is known for her prophetic edge, distinctive voice, unwavering energy to see lives changed through the power of music and word.

Along with her husband Nathan, Lou leads a time of sung worship online every week on a Wednesday morning where hundreds tune in for a time of drawing near to God and mutual encouragement.  Lou and her family are part of Emmanuel Church in Brighton, where they are actively involved in leading worship.

Lou will be co-leading worship with Emmanuel Smith in The Gathering celebration each evening.

Luke works for Compassion UK as Director of Church Partnerships. Luke spent many years leading local church before moving into working with a global charity, he has a passion for great coffee, especially when it is paired with an inspiring conversation with leaders and friends.

Debra is the national director and founder of Redeeming our Communities (ROC) which aims to bring about community transformation by creating strategic partnerships. She has over twenty years of experience in bringing together organisations towards the goal of social transformation. Debra was recently appointed as Deputy Lieutenant of Greater Manchester.

Debra is a member of the Spring Harvest Planning Group and also on the Essential Christian Board (the parent charity of Spring Harvest).

In Skegness Debra will be hosting in the Gathering Celebration each evening.  In Minehead she will be part of the Event Leadership Team (ELT) overseeing Pastoral and Prayer Ministry.

Abby heads up the Spring Harvest event with a small team as part of the Essential Christian Charity. Navigating a global pandemic with digital innovation was unexpected. Maybe her background in theatre helped in creating improvisational solutions. She is also an author and continues to enjoy creative pursuits.

Sammy is a preacher and musician. Currently studying Biblical Studies at Nazarene Theological College, Sammy loves digging deeper into God’s word and encouraging others to see the beauty of the gospel. She is also a member of the Spring Harvest Planning Group.

Sammy will be hosting in The Gathering celebration in Skegness. And leading the 16-18s youth team, as well as hosting in The Pursuit celebration in Minehead.

Sara & Sam Hargreaves lead Engage Worship, training and resourcing the local church for creative, sustainable and world-changing worship. They love to unite diverse groups of people around Jesus, and are passionate about genuinely inclusive all-age worship. They live in Luton, volunteering at their local church.

Joel spent most of his teenage years growing an online following through YouTube & Instagram, becoming a social media influencer and travelling the country presenting shows. Despite such success, he struggled with his identity and the subtle trap of seeking worth through likes and followers. Now working at Kintsugi Hope, he heads up Youth & Engagement, helping equip the next generation to look after their mental health. He loves Jesus and gets excited about telling people about him!

Ruth is a freelance illustrator and author working for a range of publishers including Alanna -Max, Lion Hudson/SPCK and 10Publishing.
Ruth is passionate about using her creativity to tell people about God’s love and is delighted to be working as part of the Big Start Team at Spring Harvest again this year.

Rachael serves as head of mission for the Evangelical Alliance, seeking to resource and equip the UK Church in all forms of mission activity. Rachael was previously on the leadership team of Youth for Christ and served as mission and youth adviser within the Diocese of Ely. Rachael and her family live in Ely, Cambridgeshire, where she is involved in her local church, overseeing their youth ministry and mentoring.

Rob & Nat will be leading the 8-11 programme in Skegness. They are presenters, creatives, children’s workers and co-founders of 4Front Theatre - a touring Christian theatre company.

As creators of the YouTube channel ‘Virtual Sunday School’, they are excited to be returning to Spring Harvest to run the 8-11s programme.

Justin is CEO at the Christian safeguarding charity, thirtyone:eight and chair of the Christian Forum for Safeguarding. He has a background spanning over 30 years in social work and leadership. Justin is the author of three books, Escaping the Maze of Spiritual Abuse, Just Leadership and Safeguarding As Mission. He has been a committed Christian since the age of 11, has been married for 31 years and has three adult children.

Jo is an Executive Leadership Coach with a specialised focus on supporting women navigating the challenges of peri-menopause and menopause. Inspired by her own lived experience and observing the impact on women’s careers, she became a dedicated Executive Menopause Coach. She is also the founder of the What the Fog? Facebook group and Foglights Menopause Hub. Jo was part of the leadership team of Freedom Church Romsey for 8 years.

Presenter, actor and writer Ashley Joseph has been involved in many well known TV shows. He writes for and voices the role of Jared in the BBC animated series JoJo & Gran Gran, and plays Gary in Justin's House. He has also written for Dog Squad on CBeebies and has won a multitude of awards. An accomplished theatre performer also, he is looking forward to joining the Big Start team this year, bringing together his faith and creative gifts for the first time!

ITV award-winning comedian, writer for BBC's Miranda, Not Going Out, Top Gear, CBBC's Andy and the Band etc, Paul Kerensa brings his uplifting show of stand-up and frivolity. Expect jokes, tales, behind-the-camera glimpses, a Biblical gameshow.....and an inevitable sing-song. "Top comic, top writer, top bloke" - Lee Mack.

Debs Last is a visual artist, drawing from the landscape, the figure and story telling within her own practice as an artist. She has been a Spring Harvest artist for many years and relishes the creative freedom that working in this way brings, enhancing the understanding of the theme and bringing a visual interpretation to the way we worship and connect with God. She will be in the evening celebrations and Creative Studio and is looking forward to connecting with people of all abilities wanting to explore how we connect with our Creator God. 

Phil joined Essential Christian as CEO in 2020. He has a background in church leadership and the Christian music industry with 20 years’ experience in digital and creative song publishing. Prior to joining Essential Christian, Phil was MD of Integrity Music Europe with offices in Brighton UK and Nashville, USA. Phil is married to Jan, has two grown up children.

Katie is a founder and ministry leader at Our Fathers House Recovery Ministry in east London. Our Father's House is a Christian recovery ministry bridging the gap between the 12 step fellowships and the church.

Kate is a psychologist & church leader with a particular interest in the way our emotions affect us and how to flourish even in tough times. She’s a priest in the Church of England, director of the Mind and Soul Foundation, speaker & author.

Hanna loves finding God in creation, creativity and everyone she meets! If she's not painting, collaging, or creating something, she’ll probably be out on a walk enjoying nature. 'I hope we get to create something together this week.'

Dr Andrew Ollerton is a theologian, pastor and popular communicator. He developed 'The Bible Course' with Bible Society and is also author of 'Romans: A Letter that makes sense of life' (Hodder) and 'The Bible: A story that makes sense of life' (Hodder). Andrew is married to Charlotte. They have four chickens, three kids, two fish, a snake and a dog.

Natasha Petrovic, a violinist since age four, was the youngest solo performer at the 2005 Edinburgh Festival. She earned a full scholarship to The Yehudi Menuhin School in 2008, and as principal violinist, she toured Europe. Natasha has appeared at prestigious venues like London’s Wigmore Hall and collaborated with ensembles such as the British Sinfonietta and the All Souls Orchestra. Her versatility includes recordings with Joanna Hogg from IONA, Philippa Hanna, Graham Kendrick, Judie Tzuke and Keith and Kristyn Getty.

Wellbeing Advisor

Patrick is a director of Brighter Days a business supporting wellbeing in the workplace, he also works closely with the Centre of Compassionate Leadership. He is also the founder of urban youth work charity XLP and the co-founder of mental health charity Kintsugi Hope. Patrick was awarded a OBE from the her Majesty the Queen, is an honorary fellow of London South Bank University and has written seven books. He is married to Diane and they have 4 children.

Patrick is bringing his brand new show to the After Hours programme in Skegness and Minehead. In Minehead, Patrick is also hosting the mental health sessions each day.

Rev. Beki Rogers is the principal of the St Edmund's courses, leading lay discipleship training for the Diocese of London, including the Bishop's Certificate in Christian Studies and the Licensed Lay Ministry Course. A trained spiritual director with extensive mentoring experience, she and her husband Cris run a church in East London, where they live with their two children and a mischievous house rabbit.

Beki will be part of the Event Leadership Team (ELT) overseeing Pastoral and Prayer Ministry.

Rev Dr Cris Rogers is a Church of England church planter, artist, and Star Wars fan. In 2010 Cris and his family moved to Tower Hamlets, one of the toughest estates in East London, and took on the leadership of All Hallows Bow. Their desire was to restart the church, which had shrunk to seven people, and see people flourish. Cris has a deep passion for discipleship and runs the weekly podcast Making Disciples and wider ministry of Making Disciples. He is chair of the Spring Harvest Planning Group.

Andy is the Kids and All-age ELT in Skegness and Minehead. He has worked for Scripture Union as a Children’s and Family Evangelist, tutored at Moorlands College, and recently worked as the Children’s and Family Adviser for the Diocese of Winchester. Lighthouse Ministries enables him to support churches and organisations, so combining his extensive experience with the flexibility and creativity needed to develop ministries suited to the local context.

Searchlight has a vision to create theatre that can share life-changing stories with audiences, making them laugh and cry, experiencing and sharing what is is to be human as well as experiencing God. From each of the over ten visits to the Edinburgh Fringe, the company has received many four and five star reviews.

Join them on Wednesday for In the Beginning, a five star reviewed mad comedic dash through the Book of Genesis. Lots of laughs and spills, a bit of music and a tiny bit of audience participation. One chapter will have you in floods ! It is the perfect humorous tonic for a late night laugh. And all in a hour. Lets start at the very beginning a very good place to start.

Emmanuel Smith was a live semi finalist on THE VOICE UK, where he sang ‘Made a way’ by Travis Greene and was mentored by Will.i.am. Emmanuel is a psalmist who takes the people of God into His presence through worship and praise. He has led worship at Festival of Life, Legacy Concert in Florida, David’s Tent and The Cry and recently had a sold out headline show at the Indigo O2 in Greenwich.

Emmanuel will be co-leading worship with Lou Fellingham in The Gathering celebration each evening.

Springs are a professional dance company, working in theatre, church, school and community settings for more than 40 years. Bringing their latest show - Jump In! - featuring Springs dancers Hannah, Ella and George with vocal sound artist Randolph Matthews, this interactive performance will particularly appeal to our younger guests aged 3-6 years.

Matt and Amy Summerfield are on the leadership team of Zeo Church, where Matt serves as senior leader. Amy is the chief executive of Kyria Network, an organisation dedicated to championing, empowering, and releasing women. She also serves as head of development for Skylark International.

Together, they run itinerant ministries focused on equipping leaders through training, retreats, and coaching. Matt and Amy have a long history of investing in the next generation, with Matt leading Urban Saints (formerly Crusaders) for 18 years and Amy co-founding Pulse Children and Youth Ministries, where she served for a decade. Matt is also a proud dad to two awesome sons.

Jo is author of nine books, an editor and speaker and Director of Communications for A Rocha International. She lives in Bath with her Vicar husband and their two daughters. Jo loves getting people to tell her their best stories and is excited for her very first Spring Harvest experience!

A farmer’s daughter, a Chaplain, a guitarist, and a lover of Dartmoor I am most at home in God’s creation' "My artwork is inspired by transformation; much of my practice draws from the Greek word 'Katartizo,' carrying a meaning beyond restoration. I breathe new life into discarded scrap metal, crafting large-scale and functional sculptures that evoke light and memory. I also love to explore story through mixed media.'

Robin Vincent is the chief executive of Care for the Family, a national charity that aims to strengthen family life and help those families going through difficulties. Robin has planted and led several churches, including within the most deprived areas of the UK. He also cofounded a social action project, that was awarded the QAVS. He is married to Hannah, and they have two children.

Arianna Walker is the CEO of Mercy UK and a Director at the Mind and Soul Foundation, two leading Christian mental health charities. As a coaching psychologist and founder of Equipped for Life, she provides personal and leadership coaching services. Additionally, Arianna is a trained menopause wellbeing coach, offering tailored menopause-specific support to both individuals and organisations.

Dan Walker is a journalist with over twenty years’ experience. He is currently the anchor on Channel 5’s evening news programme and is a regular presenter/host on television and radio. Dan has authored a number of books including “Standing on the Shoulders”. Dan lives in Sheffield with his family.

Dan will be speaking on Thursday afternoon in Studio 36 in Skegness.

Richmond is the senior pastor of New Life Baptist Church in Kampala, Uganda and the founder and president of Pastors' Discipleship Network, which equips thousands of pastors across Africa. Rising from adversity in one of Uganda’s poorest communities, Richmond’s life was transformed through the international child development charity Compassion. He later earned a master’s degree in spiritual formation and a PhD in leadership. As a trustee for Compassion UK, Richmond champions social justice, inspiring churches worldwide to respond to God’s call to serve vulnerable communities.  

With over four decades of ministry experience, Rick is celebrated for his ground-breaking work as the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in California. With a weekly attendance of 30,000 people, it’s one of America's largest and most influential churches. He is also the author of several best-selling books including The Purpose Driven Life which has sold more than 50 million copies.

Mark is Director of Ministry for Cambridge and District Youth for Christ and was previously youth pastor at St Johns Harborne. He is passionate about seeing young people encounter God and be equipped to be life-long disciples. He loves coffee, board games, musicals and a good theology book. Mark is also a member of the Spring Harvest Planning Group.

Sarah is a Pastor at Elim Life Church, in North Birmingham. Sarah leads ELIM Prayer, Elims national ministry for prayer. She loves to inspire people to life transforming prayer, prophecy and intercession. She loves to see people released into all God has for them.  Sarah is also part of the Spring Harvest Planning Group.

Sports Team Leader.

Peter is passionate about people being empowered to worship God with their whole lives, particularly with their physical bodies and abilities. He works as a Physiotherapist and encourages sport and fitness through his local church.

He and his team are looking forward to sharing their love of sport and of Jesus with you with a great programme of competition, keep fit and fun for all ages and abilities.

Nicky is a curate in London and is one of the few British Born Chinese clergy in the Church of England. He has a call to see lives lived to the full in Jesus' name. Nicky has a background in business technology and is passionate about anime, gaming and comics.

Helen is a gifted worship leader, musician and speaker. She is also an artist and the Holy Spirit will often minister to people through her creative art. Helen loves to sing and speak hope into people’s lives.