Women's Conference 2026

// SAVE THE DATE // BOOKINGS OPEN OCTOBER 2025 //

Welcome!

Join hundreds of women from across the East of England for an inspirational day exploring Bible themes of the wonder of Jesus and why we should keep persevering in our faith because of Him.

Lizzy Smallwood, (Bible teacher, pastor’s wife, mum and art teacher) will be teaching from Hebrews, encouraging us to press on in the Christian race despite the struggles and disappointments of life. There will also be opportunity to sing together, pray, attend seminars on relevant topics, browse our brilliant bookstall and connect with others.

Wherever you're from, we'd love for you to join us. Big church, small church, out on the coast, from a rural village or a city dweller. Whether you're new to following Jesus or have been trusting him for years. Young, old, feeling full of faith or empty and dry. Come on your own or come with a group. All are welcome!

Further information

We will share further details about the event with you nearer the time. To stay up to date, sign up online and if you have any questions, please email women@norfolkgospel.org.uk

Plan for the day:

9:30           Arrival - doors open

10:00         Session 1

11:25           Coffee break

12:00         Seminars

13:00         Lunch

14:30         Session 2

16:00         Close

Seminars 

There will be six different seminars running on the day. When you complete your booking form, you’ll be asked to choose which one you’d like to attend. Find out more about what’s on offer below.

If you have limited mobility, we’re sorry that five of our seminars will require walks of between three and seven minutes to reach the venues. Please contact us for more details by emailing women@norfolkgospel.org.uk

We have found the One… come and see! (John 1:45-46)

If you are anything like me – you probably wish you could be a bit more like Philip in John 1, inviting sceptical Nathaniel to come and meet Jesus. In this seminar we will be thinking about how we can be more intentional and a little bit braver in sharing our lives and Jesus with our non-believing friends and family.

Speaker: Lizzy Smallwood, is a pastor's wife, mum, and part-time SEN art teacher. She loves teaching the Bible to women at events - both at home and abroad. After 23 years of ministry in Dagenham, Lizzy is now based in Cornwall where she is planting gospel seeds as part of a small network of churches. 

Finishing the race well

The world tells us that retirement and growing older is the season in life for “me time”. A time to enjoy travelling, pursue our hobbies and spend quality time with family perhaps? But, what does the Bible have to teach us about what it looks like to be of the older  generation? And where will we find our identity, particularly as we may no longer be in paid employment? What does it mean to be an older woman walking with Jesus with joy and a heavenly perspective despite the challenges we may face?

Speaker: Sarah Farrar-Bell in is her 60s and is part of the church family at Broadgrace Church in Coltishall. She is married with three grown-up children and two grandsons. Previously she was a French teacher and more recently was on the pastoral staff of a church in London for nearly 10 years.

Prayer - what, why, how?

As Christian women we know we should pray, but we probably all find it easier to get on and ‘do’, rather than to talk to the true but unseen God. The aim of this seminar is to `

encourage each other in getting the most out of the amazing privilege of prayer. We will be thinking about what we should be praying for and why, and sharing some practical ways of enriching our prayer life.

Speaker: Blessed with Christian parents who were first in ministry then missionaries, Lois Collier has lived in Great Ellingham, a small village about 15 miles from Norwich, for the past 27 years. Her husband, Hugh, has been pastor of the Baptist church there for nearly 30 years, most of which Lois has spent seeking to serve alongside him as well as jointly bringing up four children, who are now all young adults. She is a part-time language tutor and enjoys walking and running in the Norfolk countryside.

Faith that sticks: helping teens know and follow Jesus

In a world full of noise and pressure, how can we help teens develop a lasting, personal faith in Jesus? Whether you're a parent, youth leader, teacher, or simply someone who cares about the next generation, this session will equip you to encourage teens to run their race with purpose, rooted in Christ and built to endure.

Speaker: Fiona Foreman has been passionate about walking alongside teenagers since she was one herself. With experience as a secondary school teacher and serving in youth ministry at her church, she brings both practical insight and deep compassion to her work with young people. Fiona values creating space for honest questions, listening well, and encouraging faith that’s real and resilient.

Dig deeper

If you’re feeling like you need to fuel your desire to read the Bible or would like some tools to help you better understand God’s word, join us for a deep dive into an Old Testament book and (re)discover the joy of knowing God better.

Speaker: Bev Dubberley is married to Andy and they have four adult children and a grandson. She has been the Outreach Worker at CityGates Church in Norwich for the past 14 years and loves helping people meet Jesus through the Bible. In her spare time, Bev enjoys family walks with their badly-behaved dog, sailing on the Broads and playing the clarinet in a local orchestra.

Knowing the God who is greater than us - Youth seminar (for Y9s - Y13s only)

Our world can be uncertain, chaotic and at times, pretty stressful. What’s the solution? It’s not a plan or a thing, but a Someone. What we need is a God who is greater than us in every way, who can bring peace to unpredictability. In this seminar, we are going to spend some time exploring and uncovering who God is and what He’s really like.

Speaker: Annie Creed is married to Jordan and has three small children. She works for CityGates Church in Norwich as one of the youth and children’s workers. She loves talking to young people about Jesus and why He is who we all truly need.

Our speaker

Lizzy Smallwood is a pastor's wife, mum, and part-time SEN art teacher. She loves 

teaching the Bible to women at events - both at home and abroad. She is married to 

Simon and has three children. For 23 years they were doing gospel ministry in a church in Dagenham, Essex. But in the summer of 2019 that changed as Simon became the pastor of a tiny church fellowship in Bodmin, Cornwall. Simon and Lizzy are now part of a small network of evangelical churches looking, by God's grace, to plant the seeds of the gospel in Cornwall. At present her favourite way to relax is with a good book and a cup of tea.

Help us spread the word

We would love your help spreading the word about the conference and with inviting other women along. You can click here to download a digital image to put in your church notice sheet, add to your website or share by email, social media or WhatsApp. When sharing, please do include the weblink to this page so people can find out more and book into the conference. If you’d like some printed flyers to give out at your church or in your small group, please get in touch and let us know your address and roughly how many you need. Email women@norfolkgospel.org.uk

Getting to the event

There is limited parking at the conference venue, Holy Trinity Church, so we advise you to plan your journey accordingly.

We do have some accessible parking spaces available. If you would like to book one, please get in touch with us in advance of the event by emailing women@norfolkgospel.org.uk

You will find several car parks within a 10-15 minutes’ walking distance, including:

•           Chantry Place (NR2 1RS)

•           RCP parking at Wessex Street (NR2 2SP)

•           NCP St Stephen’s car park at Queen's Road (NR1 3PR)

All Park & Ride services drop passengers at Norwich Bus Station, from which it’s a 15-minute walk to Holy Trinity Church.

If you travel by train, you can take the Blue Line – no.25 bus and get off at the Tesco

Express stop on Unthank Road. It’s then just a two-minute walk along Trinity Street to Holy Trinity Church.