Frequently Asked Questions

Imagine a green area with five hundred tents – a ‘tented village’. Collectively, the ‘tented village’ models a church on the move, a church travelling light, a church prepared to take risks. Individually each tent provides a platform to share something of your congregation or group story — its hopes, its experiences, its vision.

Can we join forces with another congregation?

If you feel it’s too much to go for a tent on your own, then why not team up with one or at most two other nearby churches, whether Church of Scotland or of other denominations; perhaps with another organisation in your area. It’s a good opportunity to build relationships.

Do we get our tents before the event?

No, the tents are being delivered directly to the Royal Highland Centre Site. See below, “Will we need to pitch our own story-telling tent?”

Will we need to pitch our own story-telling tent?

Our team will pitch all the tents before you come on Saturday 3rd and take them down on Monday 5th.

How should we use the tents?

Share something of your congregation or group story- its hopes, its experiences, its vision. It’s all low-tech in the tents, so bring some key people, along with a few special objects and images that will prompt the tellers and the listeners. Keep it informal and engaging as folk drop in throughout the day. Reflect and enjoy. The tents are 4.6m x 2.6m with a height of 1.9m, big enough for 5 or 6 people standing or 8 to 10 people sitting inside.

Feel free to share stories with neighbouring groups anytime throughout the weekend. There will also be specific times in the programme when we’ll ask you to be tellers and listeners. When you book your tent, there will be an option to tell us the theme of your story. In that way others who want to find out how to do what you’ve done will know where to come and hear all about it! You will also see some examples of what people plan to do on the National Gathering website, www.cwwresources.org.uk

Do we get to keep our tent?

See below, “what’s happening to the tents afterwards?”

What’s the arrangement with the “10 free tickets”?

If you don’t already have your tickets, then these will be sent to the person who booked the tent by the end of February, or within two weeks of your order, if after that. The ten tickets are issued as: 5 Saturday Day Tickets and 5 Sunday Day Tickets.

What’s happening to the tents afterwards?

Our partner relief agencies are Blythswood Care and Scottish International Relief. The tents will be donated to them after the event for use in their work throughout the world.

How will it work if it rains?

The last week in April and first week in May are about the most reliable weeks in the year for dry weather, particularly in the east of Scotland. The areas where the tents will be pitched at the Royal Highland Centre are such that most of the tents will be adjacent to a tarmac path, which will significantly reduce the risk of mud being a problem. If it’s really wet, we’re making plenty of space available in the huge Lowland Hall where story-telling can take place if required.

How much space is there inside the tent?

The tents are standard, five-person tents. The attached diagram, shows how the space is made-up.
Tent Dimensions Tent

Will there be electricity in our tent?

There will be no electricity supply to the tents

Can I bring along a generator to make my own electricity supply?

Sorry, it is not possible to have electricity generators on the site

How much space is there outside the tent?

Each tent is at least 1m from its next neighbour, but please be aware that there are guy ropes for the tent in this space. In front of the tent, there might be as little as 50cm before the main pathway, it does vary from street to street. Please keep the pathway clear so that your visitors can easily make their way up and down the streets and avenues.

Can we play music from our tent?

Yes, if you have battery powered devices (or are playing live!). Please ensure that you comply with any and all necessary copyright legislation if you are playing pre-recorded commercially available music. Please be aware that you are in a “street” of tents and be considerate to your neighbours if you’re playing loud music.

Will we know where our tent is before we arrive?

Yes, during April, we will complete our “village-planning” exercise and you will be allocated a street and ‘tent number’. We will send this to you before you arrive on site.

Can we ask to be placed in a specific position?

Because of the large number of tents it will logistically not be possible to successfully co-ordinate every request for specific positioning. Be assured that we will be encouraging and directing visitors to fully explore all the streets and avenues.

Can we sleep overnight in our tent?

We have guaranteed to Edinburgh Council that no one will be sleeping in the story-telling tents overnight. However, there are a limited number of camping spaces elsewhere onsite for overnight camping if you wish to bring your our tent. You can book a space online, or using the standard booking form.

When can we access our tent on Saturday morning?

The whole event opens at 10am each day, with doors open for tent-holders at 9am. You should aim to have your tent set-up completed by 12noon on the Saturday.

What hours should our tent be staffed?

Hours of staffing your tent are up for you to decide. It may be that you leave your tent free and open for folks to wander into, especially if your display is self-story-telling. We do encourage though, that there are people available to talk to from your church, rather than simply a static display. You should ensure that your tent is staffed especially during the focussed story-telling times of 1.30pm – 4.30pm on Saturday and 12noon - 3.30pm on Sunday.

Do we need to staff our tent during main “all together” events?

No, you should not feel chained to your tent! You can decide either to close over your tent during un-staffed periods, or leave it open for the occasional visitor to wander inside by themselves.

Will our tent need to be staffed on both days?

It would be our ideal scenario that your tent is staffed on both days, which is why we allocate the free tickets as 5 for Saturday and 5 for Sunday.

What overnight security arrangements are there?

We have arranged 24-hour security teams who will patrol all areas of the site, including the tented village, during the day and throughout the night. However, you should ensure that no valuables are left in the tents at any time.

Can we serve refreshments and snacks?

Whilst serving hospitality to your visitors would be a welcome treat for them, please be aware that you should comply with any and all necessary Environmental Health legislation. Because of the size of this event, Environmental Health Officers from Edinburgh Council will be in attendance.

Can we bring balloons, or other things that fly or can blow away?

Due to the proximity of the site to Edinburgh International Airport, the use of balloons and the like should be carefully thought-though. Certainly helium-filled balloons are discouraged in case of accidental release.

Can we use barbecues, gas fires, stoves, candles, etc.?

Because of the close proximity of one tent to the next, Edinburgh & Lothian Fire and Rescue Service have advised us to disallow the use of barbecues, gas fires, stoves, candles and anything with a naked flame, or that can cause sufficient heat to ignite nearby objects. It should be noted that smoking is expressly forbidden in the tents and surrounding streets and avenues.