Social Justice: role of faith organisations (3)

 I feel impelled to tackle issues of poverty, deprivation, exclusion and marginalisation, not because I desire to follow the teaching of Jesus, but as I consider it the correct thing to do. Neverthless the teaching attributed to Jesus is persuasive so I accept that the relationship between what I believe and the message of Jesus is a symbiotic one that determines my action.  I, along with many others, tackle issues not because we are followers of Jesus but simply because we consider it imperative  to engage in such issues.  Engaging in activities simply to promote your faith betrays an ulterior and ultimately unworthy motive.

An example of such a background is to be found in a community interest company formed by three individuals, two of whom were of an atheistic disposition and the third from a faith background.  Orginally the plan was to develop foodbanks but in the event something quite different developed: a community cafe in a healthy living centre!

Capital costs were met by an interest free loan from a local authority and revenue costs from a small number of charitable trusts.  The cafe opened for business with a paid manager/chef and an assistant.  Food was secured from Fareshare, an organisation distributing surplus food donated by food manufacturers, wholesalers and supermarkets. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) provided individuals on long-term benefits to work at the cafe and the cafe organised a 13 week day-release course at a local further education college. Individuals completing the course successfully were guaranteed a job interview at a major shopping centre.  The DWP was delighted with the success of the venture and there was hope that it might be rolled out to other locations: sadly this did not happen.  The cafe manager supported course members and customers with a signposting service to agencies.

Although the DWP was a major beneficiary of the project it offered no financial assistance.  The cafe income did not meet running costs, so after repayment of the loan to the local authority, it was decided the struggle to secure revenue grants from charitable trusts was too much and the project closed, a fate that has befallen many local charities.  

As I was an independent contractor working for a churches' social responsibility group I was in a position to assist with the formation of the company and its early work.  However, there was no other faith organisation involvement.

Social Justice: role of faith organisations (2)

 The Eldonian dream: Inside the fight for Liverpool’s community housing utopia | Liverpool | The Guardian

‘Posh-poor divide’: the rise in areas of England where wealth and deprivation appear side by side | Inequality | The Guardian

Both links above refer to issues of deprivation and the problems faced by voluntary organisations and individuals wishing to be drivers of change for the better, however 'better' is defined.  Although not specific to faith organisations the issues raised are of relevance to all organisations, including faith organisations, intent on 'improving' the lives of people living in areas of multiple deprivation. Before engaging in any activity please read the two articles and understand the issues and problems to be faced.  Together they are salutory lessons in what does go wrong and how slow the process of beneficial change (if any) can be: unremitting toil.

I declare an interest: I was active in one of the areas mentioned in the reports, ultimately unsuccessfully.

An example of what went wrong where a faith organisation was involved follows.  Again, a cautionary tale:

The Church of England parish church on the top of the hill has a large well-heeled congregation ministered to by a vicar and a curate. At the bottom of the hill is a council estate built in the 1960s. There are rows of terraced houses, blocks of flats and a shopping parade. At one end of the parade is a doctor's surgery, at the other a library. In-between one retail outlet is trading,  the others are empty. The church had no presence on the estate and very few residents made the trek up the steep hill to the  church.

The people living on the estate had a typical socio-economic profile. The church decided to take a lease from the borough council  on two of the retail units and turn them into a cafe, an activities area and a skills training workshop. The new centre was managed and run entirely by church volunteers.  Although the centre is busy it was noticeable that most of the clientele is not from the estate.

After the initial enthusiasm interest started to wane.  Then a 'big hitter' joined the congregation. An independent charity was formed as a limited company to run the centre. Trustees were nominated by the church along with representives of the borough and county councils, but no local residents either nominated or identified for future nomination. The borough sold the retail units and the county the library to the charity for nominal sums.  In return the charity raised a large capital sum from major philanthropic trusts and the Lottery. A complicated binding agreement was drawn up between the Lottery, councils and charity.

The money was used to renovate the buildings, build an extension and repurpose the library with the use of movable shelving thus enabling the space to be used for church services,  childrens' parties and other events. Part of the building was developed as a secure area for nursery provision. A small meeting room enables residents to meet councillors,  housing association managers and the like to discuss problems.

The new centre provides a range of services and activities for all age groups. The downside was the reluctance of the vast majority of people on the estate to become involved. This sadly is a feature of many secular and faith based community centres. The roots of the problem were first a failure to engage in the planning stage with the local community using appropriate methodology and secondly a failure to encourage real and not token ongoing community participation in running the centre. There was no sense of community ownership.  There was no community association to engage in dialogue, nor were opinion formers on the estate identified.  And there was no pub!

Inevitably there has been a reduction in activities.  The cafe closed, the nursery shut down and the library is under possible threat of closure as the county council seeks to cut discretionary budget expenditure.  Added to this the demolition of social housing flats is leading to a change in the socio-economic profile of the estate and the need and demand for community services and activities is declining.