Student Alpha

Pat Allerton is the former UK relationship manager for Student Alpha.

So I’ve just got back from Brazil! Land of the Amazon, Rio, Carnival and Pele But for two weeks only, it was also the land of a team of four from England, enjoying its diversity while we were out there doing GAT. 

‘GAT? … What’s that?’ I hear you cry!

GAT stands for Global Alpha Training.

Alpha is rapidly growing around the world but, in order to run it well, people have to be properly trained. That’s where GAT comes in. Current demand for training conferences is so high that it’s outstripping HTB’s capacity to supply them. So we thought, let’s raise up an army of teams from churches, pastorates and small groups who know Alpha well, and can go and run the conferences! So that’s what we did. By the end of the year, Alpha International hopes to have sent out 90 teams like us. We had an amazing time training over 120 pastors and lay leaders how to run an Alpha course.

Training: it’s absolutely key! Pele, the greatest footballer in history, didn’t earn that status without training hard and honing his skills. Mozart didn’t produce exceptional music without hours of focussed practice. And your Alpha course won’t be all that it can be unless you understand the model and have done the necessary training.

Alpha works differently from other Christian courses. It’s less ‘download from the front’ and more ‘learning in a group context’. So if you’re planning a course, make sure you do the training as a team. Just go to the ‘training’ section of the Blogsite to access it; you’ll be asked to register, and then you’re good to go!