Some questions frequently asked by parents of students at or soon to be at University.

My son/daughter is leaving for university shortly. How do I locate the evangelical Christian Union?

The best way to get your son or daughter linked-up to their CU is to fill-in the Fresh new student linkup form. This will send their details to the Christian Union, and also it means you will be sent our Fresh pack- a Bible study resource for new students.

My son/daughter has just joined a UCCF Christian Union. What is UCCF? Does it have denominational links? What is a Christian Union anyway?

UCCF (Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship) is a national student movement which seeks to unite Christian students around a central set of beliefs that we view as being central to the historical Christian faith. We call these beliefs our ‘doctrinal basis’- you can read it here. Individual Christian Unions are made-up of Christian students from a very wide variety of church backgrounds, traditions and denominations. CUs are groups of Christians who try to be generous and broad-minded for the sake of gospel unity, while being faithful to the non-negotiables of a biblical faith. Their purpose is to be mission teams on university campuses, and not to become mini churches. For this reason, there are no official UCCF positions on issues like church government or the gifts of the Holy Spirit; but we stand firmly for central truths such as the exclusivity of Jesus Christ as the means of salvation, and the centrality of his atoning death.

My son/daughter is part of a Christian Union at his/her university. How can I support and encourage them in their involvement in it?

If you would like to support your children while they are at university, the best way is of course to pray for them regularly.  The UCCF website offers specific prayer points and news updates on individual CUs (in case your son or daughter is not great at keeping in touch!)  We would also love to send you our CU Friends newsletters which give termly news about the CUs in a local area.  Please click here to sign up to receive CU Friends news.

Another great way to help your children is to keep them well-resourced. If you’d like to see them reading good books, get them signed-up to our student card scheme which offers substantial discounts with Wesley Owen, Authentic Media and The Good Book Company.

How can I help my son/daughter to find a Bible believing church now they have left home for university?

Finding a church is a fairly personal choice to make in many ways. Different churches have various approaches to service styles and ways of expressing faith. All of this is healthy, but we believe that at the centre of any church should be the clear, faithful teaching of the Bible. This can be hard to find, and we appreciate that parents will be concerned that their children settle in a good church.

Most CUs contain members from various local churches, and some will have produced a “good church guide”. Take recommendations from home church leaders and others who have contacts.

Encourage your son or daughter to look at our finding a church page on this website.