Welcome to the Help area for Yearly Meeting

Welcome to the help area for Yearly Meeting

In these pages you can find information for a range of enquiries and support. These pages will be updated throughout Yearly Meeting. It is also worth looking at the other pages on the Yearly Meeting website and in the Yearly Meeting documents.

Please view the frequently asked questions below to see if your query is addressed. If it is not covered on this page, please check our specific support pages for the following areas:

- Technical Support
- Pastoral Care help
- Safeguarding help
- Accessibility support

Yearly Meeting 2026

When is Yearly Meeting 2026?

  • Yearly Meeting will be meeting three times in 2026:
  • -1–4 May 2026 at Friends House, London
  • -18 July 2026 in Manchester
  • -21 November 2026 at Friends House, London

What is the topic for Yearly Meeting, May 2026?

  • In addition to some of the regular business that comes to Yearly Meeting, during our sessions in May we will consider the following questions, discerned by Yearly Meeting Agenda Committee:
  • In a divided world
  • - what unites us as a Spirit-led community? How do we foster acceptance and belonging?
  • -as a Spirit-led community, how can we handle conflict well in a way that builds connections, nurtures community and finds common ground, overcoming divisiveness and polarisation?

When can I book?

  • Bookings open on the 12 January 2026 and close on 27th April 2026 for attendance in Friends House and online. Please allow a week for us to process your booking.

About Yearly Meeting

Who can attend?

  • -All members and attenders are welcome. Attenders do not have to obtain specific permission to come to Yearly Meeting.
  • -Friends from outside Britain Yearly Meeting are also welcome
  • -Children and young people are very welcome, please view the 0–18s page for further information about the Children & Young Peoples programmes.

Yearly Meeting updates mailing list

  • We used to maintain a list of people who wished to be informed about news relating to Yearly Meeting. This has now been merged with Hope So!, a newsletter giving updates on the sessions and committees of our Yearly Meeting. To be kept updated it is best to subscribe to Hope So!.
  • To unsubscribe from this, or any other of our newsletters, you can simply scroll down to the bottom of the newsletter and use the 'Unsubscribe' link.

What is the cost of attending Yearly Meeting?

  • There is no charge to attend Yearly Meeting at Friends House or online. Of course we welcome donations to help cover costs.
  • You will need to cover the cost of your travel, accommodation and food and drink.
  • Junior Yearly Meeting and Young People @ Yearly Meeting are residential events for which there is a cost to attend. Please see the 0–18s page for information and guidance about these residential events.
  • No Friend should be prevented from attending Yearly Meeting because they can't afford it. If you need financial help please speak to Friends in your local or area meeting or your worshipping community. They may be able to help. If they can't, you can ask for financial support from the Yearly Meeting bursary fund. You can request support when completing your booking form.
  • If you would like to contribute to the Yearly Meeting bursary fund and help provide financial support to Friends, please visit the Yearly Meeting bursary fund page

Yearly Meeting bookings

Why do I need to book to attend Yearly Meeting?

  • You need to book so that we can ensure we have sufficient space for everyone attending and that we can keep everyone safe.

How do I book?

  • Book on this website. Here you will also find further information about what is happening at Yearly Meeting and you can access the documents once they are published. If you need assistance contact the Yearly Meeting Helpdesk at ym@quaker.org.uk or 020 7663 1040

Can a family book together?

How do children register?

  • Children can be registered online, use the main registration link and choose the appropriate form.
  • Participants age 16 and over may, if they wish, attend events and sessions outside the Youth, Children & Families programmes. If they plan to attend these events and sessions independently from an adult, they will need to complete the main Yearly Meeting registration form.
  • Participants under 16 years may only attend events and sessions (in person) outside the Youth, Children & Families programmes if accompanied by a responsible adult who is registered for Yearly Meeting.

Can my child/young person attend a different programme from their age group?

  • Unfortunately, this will not be possible. All under 18s need to attend the programme for their age group, where they will each be appropriately supported. We are not able to make exceptions.

Do I have to register for the Swarthmore Lecture?

  • You do not need to register separately for the Swarthmore Lecture unless you are not attending Yearly Meeting. You can also watch the livestream on YouTube without registering for Yearly Meeting. For more information, including if you are not registering for Yearly Meeting visit the Swarthmore Lecture page (offsite link).

Do I have to register for the Salter Lecture?

  • You do not need to register separately for the Salter Lecture; however, you do need to register for Yearly Meeting to attend it. It will be available in Friends House and online.

What happens if an event is full?

  • If you try to book for an online event that is fully booked, you will be placed on a waiting list. As soon as a place becomes available, you will be booked for the event and notified.

Accommodation

Where can I stay?

Timetable

Are there any details about agenda and timetable available yet?

  • The full programme will be available in YM Agenda and Notes.
  • An outline timetable of the Yearly Meeting May weekend is also available.
  • See the Documents page for details
  • Prior to Yearly Meeting in May there will be online preparation sessions between 13 and 17 April. These are to help prepare our hearts and minds for the discernment at Yearly Meeting.
  • From 20 to 26 March Quaker Recognised Bodies and Yearly Meeting central committees and programmes will offer a wide range of online meetings.
  • For these and all sessions listed below you can book to attend through the Yearly Meeting planner (available from February 2026 for those who have registered for Yearly Meeting).
  • The full timetable will also be available online once the Yearly Meeting Planner (Sched) opens in February 2026. This is only accessible by those registered to attend. You will be sent an email to confirm that you are registered and able to access the YM Planner.

When is the Swarthmore Lecture?

When is the Salter Lecture?

  • Sunday 3 May 2026 at 7pm.

Yearly Meeting documents

When will the documents be available?

  • Yearly Meeting documents will be published as follows:
  • - Preparing for YM (December 2025)
  • - Outline Timetable (December 2025)
  • - Agenda & Notes (February 2026)
  • - Tabular Statement (April 2026)
  • - Testimonies (April 2026)
  • - Schedule of Nominations (April 2026)
  • - The Yearly Meeting Epistle and Yearly Meeting Minutes are published on the website a few days after the event

What formats are available?

  • All documents are published as PDFs and available from the website.
  • Printed copies are available for those with access needs. This includes those who can't use smartphones, tablets or e-readers during the event. Please request these only if necessary. This helps us reduce costs and environmental impact. If you need accessible versions, you can request them when registering or by emailing ym@quaker.org.uk.

Getting involved

Are there ways I can get involved in making Yearly Meeting happen?

  • Yes there are a number of opportunities to volunteer or offer service. See Get involved page.

Groups Fair

How can I visit the Groups Fair?

  • The Groups Fair will take place in Friends House only, on Saturday 2 May and Sunday 3 May, at lunchtime. You do not need to book separately for this, but you do need to be registered to attend Yearly Meeting in Friends House.

Who can have space at the Groups Fair?

  • Space is limited to Quaker Recognised Bodies and area meetings with a minuted concern. If you feel you meet this, please email ym@quaker.org.uk.
  • The deadline to submit requests for the Groups Fair is Sunday 11 January.

Special Interest Meetings

  • Special Interest Meetings offer an insight into Quaker work and witness offered by Quaker groups, the committees and work programmes of Quakers in Britain. These will take place between 20 and 26 March. For more details on these, see the online Yearly Meeting planner, once you have registered for Yearly Meeting.

When will special interest meetings be held?

  • All special interest meetings take place online between 20 and 26 March 2026

How can I attend a special interest meeting?

  • You need to be registered to attend Yearly Meeting. All special interest meetings will be held online. You can book for these in the Yearly Meeting Planner once you are registered.

Who can hold a special interest meeting?

  • To run a special interest meeting you need to be a Quaker Recognised Bodies or an area meeting with a minuted concern. If you feel you meet this, please email ym@quaker.org.uk.
  • The deadline to submit requests to hold a Special Interest Meeting is Sunday 11 January.

Attending in Friends House

Will there be food available?

  • Food and light snacks will be available for purchase. There will also be an option to pre-purchase meals which will save time and help us reduce waste. We will get in touch by email on how to pre-order and what is available in February 2026.

Is there somewhere to leave luggage

  • The cloakroom will be open from 12:00 on Friday 1 May.

Support and help

What help and support is available at Yearly Meeting?

  • Yearly Meeting Elders offer prayerful support and oversight in Yearly Meeting sessions (in Friends House and online), with drop-in time following each session. Yearly Meeting Elders wear a purple sash to help you identify them.
  • Pastoral Support offers support for Friends who may need emotional, social or spiritual support. Welcome and Pastoral Support Friends will be available in Friends House and during Yearly Meeting and can also be contacted by email (pastoralsupport@quaker.org.uk) or phone (07845 696 228). Welcome and Pastoral Support Friends wear a green sash to help you identify them. They can also be found at the Welcome and Pastoral Support Desk and in Yearly Meeting Sessions.
  • Further information will be available in Agenda and Notes and Attending Friends House. Please see our documents page.
  • For general information, or practical questions about Yearly Meeting you can contact the Yearly Meeting helpdesk by email ym@quaker.org.uk or phoning 020 7663 1040. In Friends House during Yearly Meeting you can also ask at Reception, the Welcome and Pastoral Support desk, or in the Community Hub.

Where can I get technical help?

Who can I contact about accessibility?

I'm unhappy with someone's behaviour

  • 'Our Community Agreement (PDF)' sets out how we will look after each other as part of an online gathering. Behaviour such as bullying, harassment and verbal abuse is not acceptable and will not be tolerated. Our Policy and Procedures on Bullying, Harassment and Verbal Abuse sets out how we will respond to and address these actions and/or behaviours, at both live and virtual events, and any issues arising on social media sites.
  • Any reports around bullying, harassment and/or verbal abuse can be made both during the event and after the event. Where possible try to resolve the conflict through informal means. However, if this is not possible you should initially approach Yearly Meeting Elders with your concern.

General support and enquiries

  • For general support and enquiries contact the Yearly Meeting team:
  • Email: ym@quaker.org.uk
  • Phone: 020 7663 1040

Privacy and data

What do you do with my data?

  • In order to run Yearly Meeting we will need to add your details to our contacts database and to third party suppliers we are using to assist with running this event, including Sched.com and Mailchimp. If you are already on our database we will update our records based the details you provide on your registration form. If you are not already on our database we will only hold your details for the purpose of organising this event. In this case, after the event, we will remove your details.
  • Zoom will be used for the online elements of Yearly Meeting.
  • We recommend you read the following privacy policies and statements:

Photography and video

  • Read our image consent page to find out what we will do with your data. We do not identify people by name or meeting without specific, prior permission. Coloured lanyards will be issued to anyone who does not want their image to be used so they can be identified and kept out of published imagery.
  • Filming in sessions:
  • Filming takes place at Yearly Meeting in sessions. Footage is livestreamed and may also be used for Quaker communications purposes to illustrate Yearly Meeting in session. Additional consent will be sought for anyone who might feature prominently in published videos. Coloured lanyards will be issued to anyone who does not want their image to be used so they can be identified and kept out of published imagery.

General help and enquiries

Please make sure to read through our Frequently Asked Questions section. If you still need assistance and support, please contact our Yearly Meeting team.