For team leaders & staff
One Pathway — this page is for Gardens Team.
01 — The map
The Growth Pathway — tap any step to get more info.
Nobody arrives at the end. The pathway just makes the next step obvious.
02 — The one thing
If a leader remembers one thing, make it this.
“At Gardens there's one pathway. Alpha is where you explore your questions. Planted is a four week course run on Sundays after the gathering where you find out who Jesus is, who you are in Him, who we are, and what's next. Once you've done Planted, you're ready for a Life Group. And Sundays hold the whole thing together.”
03 — The steps
What each step is actually for.
Step 1 · Exploring
The front door for questions.
A safe, no-pressure space to explore faith, ask anything, and hear the gospel over a series of weeks.
Step 2 · Heading to following
The first thing a new Christian does.
Four weeks, on Sundays, straight after the gathering. Four questions that give someone their footing in Christ and at Gardens.
Step 3 · Following
Where following Jesus actually happens.
Ongoing community — a small group of people who grow, pray, and do life together beyond Sunday.
04 — Inside Planted
Sundays, after the gathering.
05 — Sundays
Sundays sit under the whole pathway, not at the start of it.
For the explorer
Someone can come for months without committing to anything. Sunday is where they meet the church, hear the gospel, and get invited to Alpha.
For the follower
The same gathering that welcomes a sceptic feeds a mature believer. Sunday is also where Planted runs and where Life Groups gather people in.
06 — Hold the line
Four things every leader and staff member holds to.
If someone gives their life to Jesus, the very next thing we point them to is Planted. Not a roster, not a course, not a conversation “sometime”. Planted.
Planted is the gateway. It means everyone joining a Life Group shares the same foundation, and Life Group leaders aren't starting from scratch.
Every conversation ends with one clear invitation — the very next box on the pathway, not the whole map.
It's tempting to create a special track for a keen person. Every extra path makes the pathway harder to explain and easier to fall out of. One pathway, for everyone.
07 — In the room
The conversations leaders actually have.
Yes, and it's not about their maturity. Weeks 3 and 4 — who Gardens is and who's next — are about this church and their part in it. That's new information for everyone who's new here.
“It's not a beginners' course, it's how we get on the same page. Four Sundays and you'll know this church inside out.”
Warmly hold the line. Planted is short, it's on Sundays, and it's what makes Life Groups work well.
“Planted's only four Sundays and it's right after church — then there's a group waiting for you. It's worth doing it in that order.”
Celebrate, then give them one next step: Planted. Get their details, tell them when the next round starts, and follow up personally that week.
“That's the best news. There's a four-week thing called Planted that starts here after church — I'd love to walk you in on the first day.”
That's exactly who Alpha is for. Lead with the questions, not the content.
“Honestly, that's the whole point of it. It's a room full of people asking the same thing — you don't have to believe anything to come.”
That's the gap that costs us people. Week 4 — “Who next?” — is where they should be connected to a specific Life Group, with a name, a night, and an address. Follow up within a week.
They grow out of the pathway, they aren't extra steps on it. Following Jesus in a Life Group naturally leads into serving. Keep the diagram to three steps — it stays memorable.