Church weekend away programme template, with an example

A good weekend away programme is clear, realistic and leaves room to breathe. Below is a simple template you can copy into a document or spreadsheet, followed by a worked example and some practical tips.

What to include for each programme item

Day and time: start and finish times, so people can plan around them
Title: short and descriptive, such as "Session 1: Welcome and worship"
Location: which room or space, especially at larger venues
Category: for example meal, session, activity or free time, so people can scan quickly
Age group or audience: whether an item is for everyone, or for a group such as children, young people or adults
Notes: anything people need to know, such as "bring a coat" or "sign up at the desk"
Leader or speaker: useful for you and for attendees
Roles needed: for your own planning, such as sound, welcome team or children's leader

Worked example: Friday to Sunday

This is an illustrative example only. Adapt the times and content to your own church and venue.

Friday

Time	Item	Location
16:00–18:00	Arrivals and room allocation	Reception
18:30	Evening meal	Dining hall
20:00	Session 1: Welcome and worship	Main hall
21:30	Social time, tea and coffee	Lounge

Saturday

Time	Item	Location
08:00–09:00	Breakfast	Dining hall
09:30	Session 2: Teaching	Main hall
11:00	Coffee break	Lounge
11:30	Workshops (choose one)	Rooms 1–3
13:00	Lunch	Dining hall
14:00–17:30	Free time and optional activities	Grounds and local area
18:30	Evening meal	Dining hall
20:00	Session 3: Worship and prayer	Main hall

Sunday

Time	Item	Location
08:00–09:00	Breakfast and packing	Dining hall
10:00	Closing service	Main hall
11:30	Tidy up and departures	Throughout
12:30	Lunch (optional)	Dining hall

Tips for a programme that works

Fix the anchors first. Place meals and main sessions, then fill in everything around them.
Protect free time. Unstructured time is often when the best conversations happen. Break times and mealtimes are when relationships can really grow, so don't squeeze them to fit in one more session.
Allow for transitions. People need time to move between rooms and queue for food. Factor in the number of people: an event of 400 needs much more time for moving around, and for getting through meals, than an event of 100.
Offer choices. Optional activities and workshops suit different ages, energy levels and interests.
Be specific about locations. "Main hall" is better than "downstairs". Make sure people also have an easy-to-access map of the venue, so they can find their way without having to ask. The GatherPoint.church app can show a map to attendees.
Plan for change. Something will shift: a speaker runs over, the weather turns, a meal is delayed. Decide in advance how you will tell people.

Ideas to make your programme memorable

Alongside the sessions and meals, a few distinctive touches can make a weekend away stick in people's memories. Here are some ideas to consider, and you can adapt each to your own church and venue.

An evening bedtime story for younger children. Invite the church's best storytellers to read or tell a story before bed. It gives children a calm end to a busy day, gives parents a breather, and it's often a favourite for the storytellers too.
Optional morning and evening prayer. Short, simple times of prayer at the start and end of each day give people a chance to pause. Making them optional means no one feels pressured, and it keeps the main programme uncluttered.
A 5k walk, jog or run. Offer a route for everyone, whether they want to stroll, jog or run. You could make it competitive, with times, a trophy or friendly rivalry between families or home groups, or keep it relaxed and just about getting out together. Check the route for safety and accessibility.
Activities in the local area. Your church may have National Trust members who would enjoy a visit to a nearby property or walk, so ask around. Local trips are good for people who like to get out and about during free time, and you can list them in the programme as optional items.
A barn dance or ceilidh. A caller teaches the steps, so no one needs experience, and it gets all ages laughing together. Consider adding a fun photo booth, with props and a backdrop, for memories people can take home.

Mark each of these as optional in your programme, add them under their own category, and include the time and meeting point, so people can easily find them and choose what suits them.

Planning for different age groups

Most church weekends away bring together several age groups, and one timetable rarely suits everyone. Plan the shared moments first, then add parallel options for each group so everyone has something that works for them.

Children

Keep sessions short, active and varied, with plenty of movement and creative activity.
Build in rest, snacks and early evenings. Younger children tire quickly.
Be clear about where each group meets, when parents drop off and collect, and who is responsible at each point.
Follow your church's safeguarding policy for supervision, consent forms and the adult-to-child ratios you need. Check with your denomination or insurer if you are unsure.

Young people

Give them their own sessions and activities, but let them join the whole-group times too.
Allow for later evenings and social time, with clear boundaries and leaders present.
Offer choice where you can. Teenagers often engage best when they have some say in what they do.

Adults and families

Make sure parents can take part in sessions while their children are looked after.
Offer a mix of structured sessions and free time, and think about quieter options as well as lively ones.

Older people

Allow extra time between items and avoid long walks between venues.
Offer seating, and make accessibility clear in the programme and on your map.

Showing each group its own programme

Adding an age group or audience to each programme item makes it easier for people to find what is relevant to them, and for leaders to see where each group needs to be at any time.

Avoiding overcommitment of children's and youth workers

Children's and youth workers are often asked to do the most, and they can easily end up leading several sessions back to back, with little chance to eat, rest or join in themselves. Overcommitment is a quick route to burnout, and it can also make supervision less safe if leaders are stretched or running between rooms.

When you build your programme in GatherPoint.church, the rota management features help you keep this under control:

Set limits: cap how much any one volunteer can be assigned across the event, so no one is given more than you have agreed is fair.
Catch clashes: conflicts are flagged automatically, so a worker is not assigned to two sessions at once.
Track numbers: set how many people each role needs and see which roles are still short, so you can recruit more helpers rather than leaning on the same few.
Make assignments visible: workers can check their own assignments in the app, and organisers can export them to PDF, so everyone knows what is expected.

Learn more on our rota management page, or read our guide to planning a volunteer rota that works.

Handling changes on the day

A printed programme cannot be corrected once it has been handed out, and group chats quickly bury important news. If your programme is shared digitally, you can update it in one place and everyone sees the change. See our guide to printed vs digital programmes for the trade-offs.

Ditch the spreadsheet: build the programme directly in the app

A template is a good way to start thinking, but you don't need to keep the programme in a spreadsheet. We suggest building it directly in GatherPoint.church instead. It's quick and easy, and every organiser can see the programme taking shape in real time, rather than passing a file back and forth and wondering which version is current.

Group items by category, update them whenever you need to, and assign volunteer roles to programme items. Attendees open a link on their phone, with no app to download and no account. See the features or try the live demo (best on a phone).

More guides

Planning a weekend away or conference?

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