church action on poverty 2010 annual review

7/30/2019 Church Action on Poverty 2010 annual review

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annual review2010

enough for allThishasbeen

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(Proverbs10:15).

Revd LewisRoseis chair ofChurch

Actionon Poverty


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annual review 2010

sustainable livelihoodsWe aim to enable people in poverty to develop more sustainable livelihoods: incomesecurity and paid employment which promotes dignity and justice.

Thrivehasallowedthedormantmeto

blossomagain eventhough

theproblemsoflifehave

notchangedIfeelvalued an

confdentenoughto

enterfulllifeagai

Kath Carter lives on the state pension in Stockton-on-Tees, and acts as carer or her husband, son andgrandchildren.

When our Thrive project made contact with Kath,she had lost all connection with the outside world,and her lie was dominated by illness and poverty.

Kath participated in Thrives Livelihoods researchand received training in community organising. Sheis now a volunteer mentor with the project, is takingthe lead on public actions in her community, and hasbecome a trustee o Church Action on Poverty.

Our unique approach really does change lives, andenable people to build their own voices and livelihoods.


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sustainable livelihoo

Thrive is a project in Stockton-on-Tees, which was set

up by Church Action on Poverty and is now in the processo becoming an independent, locally-run communityorganisation.

Thrive gives people in poverty the power to change theirsituation by using a unique combination o two approaches. The Sustainable Livelihoodsmodel helps isolated and excluded people to make better use o the assets they have. Ourcommunity organising enables them to take practical, public action or change.

Recently, Thrive has completed major pieces o work ocusing on health, wellbeingand fnancial inclusion. We also ran the very successul Rip-o TV campaign, mobilisingChurch Action on Povertys supporters to challenge a high-cost lender which wasexploiting Thrives members. And Thrive was the subject o an episode o the BBCdocumentaryInside Out. www.thrive-stockton.org.uk

Since 2005, we have been campaigning to change the Government policies that leadto the destitution o people who are seeking, or have been reused, sanctuary in the UK.We have been part o the Still Human Still Here network, working with other organisa-tions who are also concerned about the plight o these very vulnerable people.

Recent actions on this issue have included a major email campaign which persuadedthe Government not to cut the support given to people seeking sanctuary. We alsopersuaded many Parliamentary candidates to sign a Sanctuary Pledge in the run-up tothe 2010 General Election. Our supporters in churches raised awareness by taking the

Endurance Challenge, living on the ood available to people seeking sanctuary.We will continue to act on this issue as part o our new Close the Gap initiative, and

resources are available rom our website or churches wishing to take action on sanctu-ary issues.www.church-poverty.org.uk/livingghosts

Since 2002, weve been campaigning or churches to set an exam-

ple or other employers, by ensuring that all o their employees receivea Living Wage which is enough to keep them out o poverty.The campaign is linked to other calls or air pay, and is based on

rigorous research which identifes a Minimum Income Standard orthe UK. We provide resources and regular updates or churches whomake the commitment.

In the past couple o years, several o the UKs denominations haveresponded positively to this campaign. The Methodist Church, theBaptist Union, the United Reormed Church, the Church o Scotlandand the Religious Society o Friends have all expressed their supportor the principle or made concrete commitments. We are now workingto persuade other denominations to ollow suit.www.church-poverty.org.uk/livingwage

Matthew Fell and Kate Dziubinska,members o a Youth St Vincent De Pagroup, took our Endurance Challenge

living ghosts

thrive

living wage

Thrive makes me eel more confdeand that I am not alone. My voice is hear

To be under the stress o government alwawatching you is really unimaginabl


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annual review 2010

a voice to people inpovertyWe want all poor and marginalised people to have an effective voice in shaping decisionwhich affect their lives.

Thegrouphasormedasa

whole,withpeoplewhoare

clearaboutwhattheywanttodoand

asensethatwecanmakeachange

In Salord, a Residents & Tenants group ina multi-storey block o ats had realised thatmany new tenants were rom dierent coun-tries (including Eastern Europe and Arica). OurCommunity Pride Unit ran a cultural awarenessworkshop, and helped them to think throughhow they could enable new people to contrib-ute to important decisions being made aboutthe uture o their block.


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a voice to people in pover

Community Pride has been seeking out solutions to poverty and inequality inManchester and Salord since 1999.

The Community Pride Unit (CPU) runs training programmes with marginalisedgroups o people to increase their confdence and knowledge, and enable them to play anactive role in local decision-making. The work is very much rooted in the community andtargeted where it is most needed. It builds peoples confdence and leads to real changesin policies and services.

For the past three years, CPU has been running a Take Part Pathfnder scheme inSalord. Weve worked with all kinds o people, including reugees, people seeking sanctu-ary, residents groups, DeaBlind people and Travellers. Were now planning to share ourexciting approach much more widely and enable more people to use it. www.communitypride.org.uk

Since 2008, weve been working to build ChangeMakers coalitions in Manchester,Bradord and Stockton (see Thrive on the previous page). We use broad-based communi-ty organising techniques to bring together community groups rom poor areas, and helpthem to work together or change.

In the past year, we have trained over 200 people in community leadership and howto achieve change. Manchester ChangeMakers is now in the process o becoming an inde-pendent organisation. Its run some very successul actions, including a Carers Hearingwhich led local health services to make major improvements to their services.

Bradord ChangeMakers uses acilitated dialogue to tackle the tensions that existbetween dierent communities in the region. It played a prominent role in responding tothe extremist English Deence Leagues march in Bradord in summer 2010.

The training was very powerul and energising. www.changemakersmanchester.org

www.participatorybudgeting.org.

Itgotpeopleonthisestatetodo

something sociallytogether

Our Participatory Budgeting Unit has pioneered the use othis approach in the UK. It gives local people a greater say in

how public money will be spent, and makes a real dierencein poor communities.Through our partnership with the Department or

Communities and Local Government, weve been workingsince 2007 to help over 120 local councils across the UK toopen up their budgets. Were now planning to mobilise oursupporters to call or more and better PB!

changemakers

community pride

participatory budgeting

ClaireArymarworked

ona

PBprojectfortheCou

ncil

inCornwall


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annual review 2010

mobilising churchesWe mobilise churches to work with others to overcome poverty. We want the churches toactively promote a bias to the poor, both internally and externally.

Heretherewasarichfeastofecumenical

worshipincludingliturgicaldance,Salvation

Armysongsters,folkprotestsongsandpraye

rsfor

communitiesthatChurchActiononPovertyis

working withacrosstheNorthEast

October 2009 was the 10th anniversary o ourPilgrimage Against Poverty, which saw dedicated cam-

paigners walk all the way rom Iona to Westminster,enthusing and inspiring churches along the way.

Our local groups marked the anniversary withPilgrimages o their own in Shefeld, Newcastle, Leeds,Manchester and elsewhere.

The Newcastle Pilgrimage saw over 300 Pilgrimsvisiting a range o key sites in the area, and making avisible witness to their commitment to stand alongsidepeople in poverty.

The Pilgrimage raised substantial unds or ournational campaigns and or vital local projects.


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mobilising church

In many areas, our supporters have joined together to orm their own Church Actionon Poverty groups. They work together with us, and carry out their own actions to tacklepoverty locally.

We currently have active groups in Barnsley, Leeds, Merseyside, the North East,Northern Ireland and Shefeld. Theyre involved in projects including a Starter Packsscheme, support or young unemployed men, uel poverty payments, and an annualPilgrimage Against Poverty (see opposite).www.church-poverty.org.uk/groups

The Leeds Pilgrimage Against Poverty17 October 2009

www.actionweek.org.uk

Each year at the start o February, we resource and support churches across the UK torun church services and events as part o Poverty & Homelessness Action Week. We workin partnership with Housing Justice and Scottish Churches Housing Action.

In 2010, over 150 events took place, raising awareness o the existence o poverty incommunities, and raising unds or our work as well as or local projects. Our theme in2010 was Enough or All. Many o the events spread the word about the wealth that canbe ound i we value community and ellowship rather than money and material things.

One o the keys to restoring aith in democracy is ensuring that the MPs we elect areheld to account or what they do on our behal in Parliament. Were inviting churches andgroups to play a key role in making this happen. Already, over 60 have pledged to organ-ise regular and ongoing meetings with their MPs. We provide briefngs on issues thatthey can raise with their MPs.

The Network will be one o our most important tools or mobilising churches andachieving change in the coming years. www.church-poverty.org.uk/mp

Since summer 2009, weve built up a network o over 3,000 enthusiastic online cam-paigners. Using email, Facebook, Twitter and online video, weve mobilised them to takeregular actions to close the gap between rich and poor.

The network has already made some signifcant achievements. We helped preventthe Government rom cutting support or people seeking sanctuary; we helped persuadeenergy companies to stop charging higher ees to their poorest customers; and we per-suaded a high-cost lender to treat their customers better.

Close the Gap will now be the theme or all our campaigning between 2011 and 2013.www.church-poverty.org.uk/

closethegap

action week

mp accountability network

close the gap

CLOSE THE GAP

local groups


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FinanceWhere our money came rom in 200910Grants 758,443

Donations 84,464

Campaigns and events 80,122

Membership subscriptions 35,191

Bank interest 94

Total 958,314

What we spent it onFundraising 17,869

Governance 11,345

Thrive 60,966

Living Ghosts 29,035

Community Pride 113,740

ChangeMakers 180,209

Participatory budgeting 317,850

Action Week 20,260

Campaigns, events and other projects 136,675

Total 887,949

Support our vital work make a donation at www.church-poverty.org.uk/give

AcknowledgementsCouncil o Management 200910Frances Ballin, Elspeth Brighton, KathleenCarter, Jenny Cooke, Millicent Dews, JulieGreen, Wayne Green, Helen Hood, AlisonJackson, Bandi Mbubi, Norbert Mbu-Mputu,Brian ONeill, Lewis Rose, Adrian Smith, JackieWorthington.

Sta and volunteers 200910Ade Arogundade, Greg Brown, Diana Campbell,Niall Cooper, Adam Dickson, Sarah Dumpleton,Liz Firth, Geo Fletcher, Janet Gee, Christina

Gonzales, Ruth Jackson, Andrea Jones, JennyLazarus, Ocia Koranteng, Sebastian Morello,Joshua Mutebe, Liam Purcell, Adam Sharpe,Lorraine Shaw, Anne Stewart, David Stott, AlanThornton, Mark Waters, Alexan Westlake.

FundersOur work is made possible by the generoussupport o many partners, donors and unders,including:Baptist Union, Church Urban Fund, EagaPartnership Trust, Faiths in Action, FriendsProvident Foundation, John Laing CharitableTrust, Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust,LankellyChase Foundation, Leigh Trust, MBReckitt Trust, The Methodist Church, OpenTheology Trust, Oxam, Rowan Charitable Trust,Scurrah Wainwright Charity, Trust Greenbelt,United Reormed Church, Waterside Trust.

Find out more and get involved

at www.church-poverty.org.uk!Dale House, 35 Dale Street, Manchester M1 2HF

Telephone 0161 236 9321 Fax 0161 237 5359

[email protected]

Twitter @churchpoverty

acebook.com/churchpoverty

Company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales, number 3780243.Registered charity number 1079986.

church action on poverty 2010 annual review

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