July Yearly Meeting

We held the first of the new-style one day Yearly Meeting sessions on 18 July. Read the full minutes (PDF).

The agenda for the day included discernment on new ways into membership. We hope to create a path to membership for those Quakers who are not part of a local meeting and who primarily worship online or with affinity-based Quaker groups. Friends welcomed this opportunity and asked Quaker Life Central Committee to work with staff and the Agenda Planning Committee to bring some proposals to make this a reality. We hope to return to this at the February 2027 YM session.

Yearly Meeting also heard an introduction to the work of the BYM Trustees Reparation Working Group (RWG), which is undertaking research and discernment to help Quakers in Britain to find a way forward on reparation for historical involvement in enslavement and colonialism. We will be asked to discern on these matters corporately in 2027. All Friends are encouraged to attend the RWG conference entitled “Truth and Repair: Our Quaker Journey Towards Justice" (at Friends House and online on 23 October 2026).

You can see some recordings of prepared ministry, including that of the RWG, on YouTube (scroll down to the thumbnails with the yellow border to see the videos from July).

Dates have now been set for Yearly Meeting 2029. We will meet on 17 February (Friends House and online), 4-7 May (Friends House and online), 21 July (outside London, venue TBC and online), 7 November (Friends House and online). See dates of all upcoming Yearly Meeting sessions.

We are still learning about how to hold Yearly Meeting sessions in the new format. The Agenda Planning Committee will review the feedback from July and see what changes should be made. Join us in November in Friends House or online to experience a one-day Yealy Meeting session for yourself.