MK Eco Church Network – October 2026 Update
24 Oct 2026
Dear MK Eco Church Network friends
Greetings, on the day that the second named storm in 2 days has arrived in the UK with rain and strong winds. These arrivals seem to confirm the predictions that this year’s El Nino in the UK would make a wet and stormy winter more likely and I’ve included some useful information about the El Nino in the Newsletter.
I hope you’ll find the wide range of information useful and as usual please share this Newsletter with other people who may be interested.
Thanks and best wishes
Stuart Kean
Convenor, MK Eco Church Network
email: mkecnetwork@ctmk.church
MK Eco Church Network – October 2026 Newsletter
Events
- Milton Keynes Parks Trust – Community Volunteering
- Friday 30 October, at 11.00am. Community Litter Pick: Waterhall Park.
- Tuesday 10 November at 11.00am. Community Litter Pick: MK Rose, Campbell Park.
- Saturday 14 November at 10,00am. Wetland Arc Project: Community Tree Planting. Help the environment and make your mark on the local landscape by planting trees with us at Old Wolverton.
- Sunday 20 December at 11.00am. Community Litter Pick: Campbell Park, Meet at Campbell Park Pavilion.
For details: https://www.theparkstrust.com/
- Forest Church Workshop, Sunday 15 November from 2-5.00pm at St Andrews Church, Great Linford, MK14 5DZ. Church Without Walls in Broughton and Brooklands has held a monthly forest church gathering for over 10 years and they are taking an afternoon to reflect on their journey, to share skills and explore new ideas of how to worship in nature. Anyone who is interested in finding out more about Forest Church is welcome to join the event. The first part of the event will be indoors sharing and listening to each other’s experiences of taking worship into nature. The second part will move outdoors to experiment with putting some of the concepts into practice and have a simple time of worship, surround by the beauty of Great Linford Manor Park. If you would like more information and to sign up to join the event please email them at Forest.church@outlook.com.
- Climate Café MK Green Fair on Saturday 21 November 1:30-4pm, The Old Bathhouse, 205 Stratford Road, Wolverton, MK12 5RL. Free Entrance. The Climate Café will be holding a Green Fair with green stalls, eco-friendly gifts for sale, eco and climate information stalls, networking and refreshments.
Information
- 10 years of the Eco Church programme. A Rocha have commissioned a report, showing what has been achieved so far with the Eco Church programme, learnings along the way and improvements for the years ahead.
- The United Nations Environmental Programme has produced some very useful information about food waste, air pollution and rotting food that you could use in your Monthly Eco Tips:
- Every day, the equivalent of 1 billion meals is wasted worldwide while millions face hunger. Cutting food loss and waste is key to a fairer, more sustainable food system.
- See how your choices add up when it comes to food waste
- What you need to know about air pollution
- Rotting food is supercharging the climate crisis. Here’s what to do about that.
- Damp: A Practical Guide to Investigation and Diagnosis
Damp is one of the most common threats to historic church buildings. Excess moisture can damage historic fabric, reduce energy efficiency, and affect the comfort and wellbeing of those using the building. This new piece of guidance from Historic England explains the different methods used to assess and monitor moisture, highlighting both their benefits and limitations. It also offers practical advice on investigating damp in historic buildings, making it a useful resource for property stewards, church officers, and anyone involved in caring for Church buildings.
- El Niño: ten things you need to know The Campaign Against Climate Change has produced a useful briefing with key information about El Nino and what we need to know about it. In the UK, it is predicted to make a wet and stormy winter more likely. This Flood Mary guide offers useful tips to prepare for potential flooding.
- Biodiversity actions – Following a hot, dry summer, extreme weather is forecast to continue with a very wet and stormy winter and an event hotter 2027, exacerbated by El Nino. The Diocese has provided advice including this collection of tips from BBOWT for climate friendly gardening which can support your gardens and the wildlife that needs them. Now is ideal planting time – be inspired by St Lawrence’s Church, Hungerford that have planted nearly 7,000 trees on land owned by local farmers, charities and a school. Now is also the time to gather tree seeds that can be planted in the future. Learn more from this Tree Council webinar and growing guide.
Advocacy and prayer
- Tell your MP: No More North Sea Drilling. You will have heard that the Jackdaw gas field has sadly been approved. There is now a big push for the much more polluting Rosebank oil field to be refused, from Oxfam, Zero Hour, etc. You may want to support this by writing to your MP and resources are available from these organisations, by clicking on the links.
- Biodiversity COP17 – The 17th Conference of the Parties on Biodiversity (COP17)is currently taking place (19-30 October) in Yerevan, Armenia. Green Christian include prayers for it in their daily prayer guide.
- Climate COP31
The 31st UN Climate Change Conference (COP31) takes place in Antalya, Türkiye from 9-20 November. An Anglican Communion delegation will attend. Tearfund share prayer prompts.
Resources
- Harvest festival resources: It is probably too late for you for this year, but the Arthur Rank Centre have produced a useful harvest festival resource which acknowledges the challenges UK farmers are currently facing, called “A Year Like No Other?”
- The Church of England is running ‘The Great Switch for creation’ in which it is encouraging all churches to switch to a renewable energy tariff. It is a relatively small step to take, but with a potentially big impact. Across the diocese, they already know of 289 churches that are on a renewable electricity tariff, according to data from the Energy Footprint Tool (2025). The Church of England have developed a robust definition for a green energy tariff, and have compiled a list of suppliers that meet this criteria. This list will be updated annually. For the Energy Footprint Tool the list of renewable energy suppliers counted is a little broader than just the most ethical green options in the Great Switch list.
Good News Stories
- Inspiration from East Yorkshire: Net Zero Transformation Investment Now Paying Off
For the congregation of Silsden Methodist Church in the Airedale Circuit, Yorkshire West District, installing solar panels and heat pumps is both environmentally friendly and a sound financial investment. The Gold Eco-Award-winning church was only opened in 2010 after many years of fundraising and quickly took to boosting its green credentials. Click here for the full article.
- Major drive to restore churches and revitalise heritage buildings in communities across England announced
74 heritage and faith buildings including churches, synagogues, town halls and castles will receive support from the Places of Worship Renewal Fund and the Heritage at Risk Capital Fund. By following this link, you can see the recipients of the Historic England Places of Worship Renewal Fund, which includes four Methodist churches and chapels.
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