Why we exist
Generation exists to help plant and establish healthy gospel churches across Scotland, so that more people and communities can come to know Jesus Christ through faithful gospel witness, word-centred ministry, and prayerful dependence on God.
Our Mission
Our vision is to see new churches multiply in post-Christian Scotland. Healthy gospel churches are needed in every kind of community. We believe new churches reach new people, new cultures, and new generations. With many churches closing across Scotland each year, church planting remains one of our best hopes for renewed gospel witness in our nation. We are planting churches that will plant more churches.
Partnerships
We are deeply grateful for partnerships with like-minded organisations and networks, including 20Schemes, FIEC, Acts 29, and Redeemer City to City, as well as supporting churches who partner with our church plants through prayer, training, encouragement, people, and financial giving. Our church plants benefit greatly from this support, and we are truly thankful for it.
We are always open to developing further partnerships, both to strengthen and resource Free Church church plants, and so that Generation can help support and encourage others involved in church planting work.
30 by 30 Project
In 2017, the Free Church of Scotland set out a bold ambition: to plant at least 30 new churches by 2030. We believe Scotland needs healthy gospel churches in every kind of community, and we have identified Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Inverness as strategically important locations for new church plants.
By January 2026, we had begun planting 18 of the 30 churches, in cities, suburbs, and towns across the country. As we look ahead, we do so with confidence in God’s provision, asking him to raise up planters, teams, and supporting churches for the work still to come. If you believe the Lord may be calling you to lead a church plant, or to support the work of the 30×30 project, we would love to hear from you.
Church Plants
Find out more about our current church plants, and how you can pray for and support their work.
Established Church Plants
We are really thankful for the church plants that have, by God’s grace, grown into established congregations. They are a real encouragement to us, and a reminder that prayerful gospel work can take root in a community and, over time, bear lasting fruit. We are looking forward to this section growing as more church plants develop and become established.
What we offer
Generation supports church planters and church planting teams as new gospel works are established across Scotland. Whether you are exploring church planting, preparing for it, or already in the early stages of a plant, we can help in the following ways:
Recruitment
We help to identify and encourage potential church planters, both individuals and teams, by creating opportunities to explore church planting, ask good questions, and take realistic next steps. If you sense God may be calling you to church planting, we would love to hear from you.
Training
We want to equip and train church planters to enjoy what they are doing, and to build healthy churches that will be church planting churches. Our training uses some of the best church planting resources available and is based on the City-to-City Urban Incubator, adapted for a UK context.
Incubator is City to City’s key two-year programme to train and develop church planters in urban ministry. Each learning module is designed to meet the needs of church planters as they launch a new work, including theological foundations for ministry, strategy, preaching, and practical leadership. These sessions are held in Edinburgh and led by experienced church planter Tom Muir. While the Incubator is designed especially for those in the first couple of years of planting, we have found it can be helpful for anyone in years 0 to 2 of a church plant. For further information, or to apply, please get in touch.
Assessment
The assessment programme is an objective and supportive way to explore your readiness for church planting. Planters receive feedback on preaching, pastoring, and strategic planning, helping to highlight both strengths and areas for growth. Wives are part of the process too, including time with female assessors to talk through ministry expectations, because church planting is never a solo endeavour. Overall, the aim is to be genuinely helpful, and to support healthy planters and healthy families as they work towards planting healthy churches. If you would like to explore assessment for church planting, please get in touch.
Coaching
Coaching provides ongoing support through regular, intentional gospel conversations. Planters are paired with trained coaches who help them think through personal life, leadership, relationships, and mission, supporting them to plant and grow healthy churches over the long term.
Funding
We can offer support and guidance around church planting funding, including helping planters and church plants explore sustainable models of support and connect with appropriate funding opportunities.
Our Needs
Church planting is a spiritual work, and we depend on the Lord for everything. To pursue the 30×30 vision, we set a target of recruiting 35 church planters. Please pray for a growing pipeline of men who are being trained and prepared to plant, and for the Lord to raise up the right teams and supporting churches around them. Alongside this, our fundraising target for 30×30 is £5,500,000 (or $6,800,000). These funds help support planters and their families, resource new works, and provide long term stability as church plants take root and grow.
How to partner with us:
Pray: Sign up for prayer updates
Give: Support 30×30 financially
Join: Come and be part of planting a church
If you would like to partner with us, or find out more, please get in touch.