NEW RELEASE!
This book tells the story of Christian Education National (CEN), formerly Christian Parent Controlled Schools, a movement that began with ordinary Christian parents. From its earliest days in the 1960s, their shared longing was for schooling that joined faith and learning, heart and mind, worship and work, and honoured Christ in every aspect of education.
What began with few resources and little recognition grew, by God’s grace, into more than a network of schools. It became a movement of Christian community shaped by a reformational vision that refused to separate the spiritual from the everyday. Education was never seen as values-neutral, nor as a matter of adding Christian “icing,” but as a coherent, Christ-centred engagement with all of life, grounded in the biblical story.
Spanning six decades, this story is one of faithfulness across generations—of sacrifice, courage, conviction, and God’s evident grace. It honours the pioneers who dreamed, prayed, built, and taught; the scholars and educators who shaped a Christian vision for schooling; and the communities who walked together through growth and struggle, unity and tension, change and renewal.
Written by two dear friends who have faithfully served our movement, Dr Ken Dickens and Dr Charlie Justins, this book is both historical account and personal witness. As CEN marks its 60th anniversary in 2026, it stands as a testimony of where we have come from, and reminds us with grace and wisdom of the One to whom this story truly belongs.
