About

SUMT is a Christian charity that aims to bring ‘faith within reach’ of every child and young person on the Isle of Man. It has been working ecumenically across the island for almost 40 years. You can find out more about who we are and the work that we do by following the buttons below:

Our Story

In 1901, CSSM (Children’s Special Services Mission) started a beach mission in Port St Mary for the holiday makers who flocked to the island’s beaches. Over time the number of holiday makers who attended decreased and the local numbers increased. This led the team (now under the guidance of Scripture Union) to start praying about there being a consistent group of active Christians on the Island running events all year round for those young people who attended and came to faith or wanted to explore faith further. 

In the 1980s, a volunteer started running lunchtime groups in the Island’s secondary schools. After a while, this became unsustainable for one person to do by themselves, so Scripture Union Ministries Trust (SUMT) was born. 

For several years, SUMT was made up of one worker, and the occasional gap year student. In the 2010s this became multiple workers and gap year students as well as administrative staff, all based in a community house in Port St Mary. As a new decade arrived, SUMT found a new home in Manor Ark (the former Police House) in Pulrose, where we aim to support work with children and young people in the local community alongside our work Island-wide.

The work we do has grown and adapted over the last 30+ years. We still run lunchtime groups in the secondary schools, but we are also involved in collective worship (assemblies), curriculum days and lessons, after school clubs and residential weekends. We seek to resource and support schools in the holistic development of children and young people and provide training and resources for churches to enable bringing Faith Within Reach of every child and young person on the Isle of Man.