[2][3] By 1993, the number of young people attending the annual New Wine charismatic evangelical Christian family conference every summer at the Royal Bath and West Showground in Somerset was sufficient for the organisers to launch a specific youth event.
The first Soul Survivor conference took place in the summer of 1993, under the leadership of Mike Pilavachi, a youth worker at St Andrew's Church, Chorleywood.
[5] Like New Wine, the Soul Survivor conferences were initially overseen by St Andrew's Church, before being established as independent entities.
Brands and venues included: Soul Survivor C East of England Showground, Peterborough (2017-2019) The festivals consisted of seminars, sporting events and art, music and drama workshops during the day, and a charismatic worship service followed by live bands in the evening.
A church, based in two converted warehouses in Watford, Hertfordshire, shares the name Soul Survivor but is a legally separate organisation.
[11] Soul Survivor Watford is a Bishops' Mission Order of the Diocese of St Albans,[12] and part of the Church of England.
In April 2023, it was announced that Mike Pilavachi had "stepped back from all ministry," including his roles leading Soul Survivor, while an investigation was carried out into "non-recent safeguarding concerns".
[3][18] This was followed in 2004 with "Soul In The City", in London, a mission in which 20,000 young people from around the world gathered in the capital to undertake practical projects and evangelistic events.