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Members of the Sheffield Church Action on Poverty 2024 Urban Poverty Pilgrimage prepare to set off.

Sheffield Central Labour MP Abtisam Mohamed has urged the Government to find ways to reduce inequality by increasing financial support for low-income households and restoring support for children in their early years.

Ms Mohamed was speaking during the annual Urban Poverty Pilgrimage, staged by our local group Church Action on Poverty in Sheffield.

She told participants: “Campaigning against poverty is a very important issue for me – it is the very reason I got involved in politics.”

Ms Mohamed urged the Government to row back on sanctions which reduce sums paid to those who fall foul of benefit rules.

“The last thing we should be doing is adopting the culture of sanctions where people are being forced into work when they are not ready or when they need support to get back into work.

“Whilst I’m pleased that the Government has said we are going to review benefits and Universal Credit, I will be pressing, alongside many of my colleagues, to make sure that this review goes in the right direction so social security provides a real safety net for the people who need it the most.” 

Abtisam Mohamed said she hoped the Government would restore the Sure Start programme, introduced by the last Labour government, and end the two-child limit.

“Sure Start was the main programme that benefited so many young people. It was one of the biggest travesties of the last 14 years that we lost Sure Start centres.”

Ms Mohamed welcomed the launch of Sheffield’s Poverty Truth Commission, which is bringing together people with lived experience of poverty and people from civic and business sectors who make decisions that impact upon people’s lives within the city.

She said she hopes to link the Commission with the National Child Poverty Task Force, established by the new Labour Government to develop strategies to reduce child poverty.

Sheffield Church Action on Poverty’s Urban Poverty Pilgrimage was the 15th to be staged in the city by thelocal group. The event is designed to raise awareness and understanding of how poverty is affecting people in Sheffield and the initiatives being taken by groups spanning different faiths.

This year’s pilgrimage visited the Broomhall, Broomhill, Crookes and Hillsborough areas of the city. Those attending the Pilgrimage heard from a number of people actively involved in trying to alleviate poverty.

Jillian Creasey, chair of the trustees of the Broomhall Centre, told pilgrims that energy poverty had become a major issue for people in the area and the Centre had successfully bid for £50,000 to fund Citizens Advice outreach workers and energy advice sessions for local people.

Revd Beth Keith, vicar designate of St Mark’s Church in neighbouring Broomhill, told Pilgrims how the church tries to provide one-to-one support for rough sleepers from the area who often choose its grounds as their first refuge after losing or leaving their home.

Both Broomhall and Broomhill have a higher proportion of students and people seeking sanctuary, and that is reflected in the makeup of those who find themselves homeless.

Revd Keith told pilgrims: “A number of them are victims of sexual assault and abuse – particularly asylum-seekers, who have had violent and traumatic experiences in their own communities.”

Fr Michael Umameh, parish priest at Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church in Hillsborough, emphasised how poverty had grown overall while also spreading beyond what might be considered traditional focus areas of finance, housing, food and energy: “Poverty exists at different levels.”

Some people have the financial means, but they can’t get out because they can’t walk long distances, can’t carry shopping bags and they don’t have any transport. Others are lonely because they have no friends, and yet others have had to flee their countries and can’t speak English well enough to explain their case or fill in forms, but cannot access translators to help them.

“A lack of translators is a form of poverty as well,” said Fr Michael, emphasising the role Hillsborough Churches Together and Sacred Heart’s St Vincent de Paul Society – currently celebrating its centenary – are playing to alleviate some of those problems.

Fr Michael appealed for people to go beyond the simple stereotypes with which some people tried to stereotype people seeking sanctuary and migrants.

“When you simply call someone an immigrant you deny them their identity. Ask them their story. The best way to understand the issues is to ask people about their stories.”

Vicky Romegoux, and Veronica Hardstaff from St Mary’s, Walkley, said an influx of professionals has led to demographic changes in the area. However, Walkley is a “layered community” where there are areas of social deprivation and hidden needs, which members of St Mary’s congregation try to address through activity in a range of community groups.

At Walkley, Pilgrims also heard from Revd Dr Alan Billings, the former South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner.

Dr Billings told pilgrims churches are not in touch with communities in the same way as they were in the 1980s, when he played a leading role in the Church of England’s Faith in the City Commission.

Asked if today’s church was “afraid of sticking its head above the parapet” in the way it did back in
the 1980s, he said: “When I look back at Faith in the City, I realise that when we were touring the country we were coming across congregations in urban areas who had deep roots in their communities and could tell us their story.

“A lot of that has been lost because we haven’t got the numbers that we had then – but that is true
of a lot of organisations including trade unions and political parties. All groups have weakened, but I do think the churches are not in touch in the same way.”

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The Bishop of Leeds chats to a volunteer, inside InterAct Pantry

Churches urged to open more Pantries

Bishop says community food approach “goes to the heart of the Christian faith"

A posed group shot, including the Bishop of Leeds at InterAct Pantry

Churches across the UK are being urged to consider opening food Pantries, as a way to strengthen their neighbourhoods and build local hope.

The Your Local Pantry network has 121 Pantries across the UK, but knows churches are ideally placed to host more and is inviting church leaders to commit to opening a Pantry in 2025.

Last week, the Rt Revd Nick Baines, Bishop of Leeds, visited InterAct Pantry in Meanwood, north Leeds, and talked with members and volunteers about the impact it has locally. The Pantry is run by a charity made up of Anglican, URC, Baptist and Methodist Churches.

Bishop encourages churches to get involved

Bishop Nick said: “What’s really impressive is that we recognise that food isn’t just for eating – we commune around food. So whether people are collecting food or eating food together, it’s a social event. It goes to the heart of the Christian faith as well, this is what we do all the time.

“I would encourage churches to consider how they might be engaged and involved in this. We need to remember, Jesus said we will be judged by whether we visit the sick, feed the hungry, give drink to those who are thirsty and so on. You can!”

Your Local Pantry’s recent Places Of Hope report found that Pantries had saved members £10.5 million in the past two years, and showed that they were bringing a wide range of community benefits, such as improved health, reduced isolation, and enhanced access to other opportunities and services.

Church Pantries reach almost 60,000 people

The Rt Revd Nick Baines, Bishop of Leeds, looks out of the InterAct Pantry window, with volunteers in the foreground

Church Action on Poverty, which coordinates the network, is now able to provide a breakdown of the figures for church-based Pantries.

Of the 121 Pantries in the network, 73 (60%) are hosted by or supported by churches or Christian charities. The first Pantry in a church opened five years ago this November, in Birmingham, and since then church-backed Pantries have been visited 362,300 times, supporting 59,800 people in 22,700 households. (If all Pantries are counted, church and non-church, those figures rise to 691,700 visits, supporting 121,800 people in 44,100 households).

Pantries are a perfect fit for pantries

James Henderson, network development coordinator for Church Action on Poverty, says: “Pantries are all about dignity, choice and hope. They are a perfect fit for churches who want to cement their role in their community, and who want to help make change happen.

“Many churches have spaces that lend themself to Pantries, but also an abundance of compassion and potential volunteers. If any church is wondering how to use food as a gateway to hope, we’d love to hear from you.”

The Bishop of Leeds chats to a volunteer, inside InterAct Pantry
The Rt Revd Nick Baines, Bishop of Leeds, chats to volunteers at InterAct Pantry

Pantries bring vast community benefits

The entire Your Local Pantry network has saved members £5.76m in the past year, and £10.5m in the past two years – but the benefits go far deeper. Research has shown that 83% of Your Local Pantry members say it has been good for their mental health; 74% feel more connected to their local community; 66% have made new friends; and 63% now eat more fresh fruit and vegetables. Pantries also have an average of 15-20 volunteers each,

Pantries are also increasingly about ongoing social transformation, with many members this year becoming involved in local democracy, social campaigns, and art projects.

Anyone interested in opening a Your Local Pantry should email info@yourlocalpantry.co.uk

One church’s story

North End Baptist Church in Portsmouth ran a food bank which had supported around 10,000 people in the five years up to 2020, and when the pandemic struck the level of local need soared. Covid changed the way the team worked, but it also prompted some reflection. Was this the right approach, or was there a better way?

Jo Green, one of the Pantry managers, says: “We spoke to schools and other organisations. They were telling us they had families who needed help but who would not go to a food bank because of the stigma. It made us wonder what we could do. 

“Our minister, Tracey, knew someone who ran a Pantry and we looked at a couple, and decided that becoming a Pantry was the way forward. We closed our food bank at the start of April 2021, and three weeks later we opened as a Pantry. The stigma has certainly reduced. We have a lot of families now and we are finding that people really value it more because they are paying towards it.

“We want to reach people in the area and build relationships. With a Pantry, people come back every week and start opening up and you hear how much it means to people. We are a church so we can direct people in the church to the Pantry, and also let Pantry members know about other things like the toddler groups.”

The Your Local Pantry logo

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A headshot of Sir Keir Starmer, alongside the words Dear Prime Minister

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A headshot of Sir Keir Starmer, alongside the words Dear Prime Minister

People with first-hand experience of poverty wrote to the Prime Minister urging him to change the Government’s approach… and received an immediate response.

A headshot of Sir Keir Starmer, alongside the words Dear Prime Minister

The Dear Prime Minister project was part of the Let’s End Poverty campaign, and involved 15 people writing to Sir Keir Starmer about their own experiences, insights and hopes.

Getting a grassroots message to the heart of Government is no easy feat, so initiatives like this often require patience. But remarkably, these letters generated an almost instant response… that evening, they were the lead story on BBC London TV news, and then the very next day they were discussed at Prime Minister’s Question Time, in a packed House of Commons.

Watch below, as Sir Keir Starmer tells MPs: “The letters are honest, powerful and important and I think they hold up a mirror to our country.” 

Dear Prime Minister letters

Sir Keir Starmer was responding to a question from Cat Smith MP, who had hosted a Parliamentary event for the Dear Prime Minister letter writers and supporters.

Several contributors read out their own letters, and there was a discussion about what it would mean to truly involve people with direct experience of poverty, when policies and systems are written and designed.

Together we can build a poverty-free nation

The foreword to the publication says:

“The new Government is aiming for a decade of national renewal. The people who need that the most – the authors of these letters and the millions who share similar experiences – must be invited to be partners in that change.

“We invite the Prime Minister to meet with the authors of these letters, to hear in person the wisdom and insights they bring, and to find ways to bring the expertise and insights derived from lived experience into the heart of policy making. Together, we can build a poverty-free nation, and we are eager to play our part”.

Some contributors, such as Karen & Andy in Morecambe Bay, wrote about the positive impact that localised projects like Poverty Truth Commissions have had, and called for similar approaches nationally. 

They said: “We have worked on many initiatives together and are seeing real change. It’s an approach that could make politics more effective, locally and nationally.”

Others talked of the importance of meaningful support, and others outlined the need for hope for a brighter future.

One contributor, Steve from west London, talked about attending his local food bank, and then becoming a volunteer. He said he had seen why we desperately need to end poverty, and what could be done differently, and added: “By ending poverty, people will be freed to make a difference in their life and in their community.”

“Listening to people who know what it’s like to live in poverty is not just the right thing to do, it’s the best way to create solutions that really work for the long term.”
Hannah Fremont-Brown
Let's End Poverty coordinator

One of the letters: Dear Prime Minister, from Carrier

Dear Prime Minister,

I am writing to you as a mum of two children, who is working hard to support them in the best way possible. I want to share with you how I believe that truly listening to people with experience of poverty can make a real difference.

Things aren’t easy. I am a lone parent without family support due to bereavements. I struggle every day due to my ill health, and the side effects from my cancer treatment. 

Both of my children have special educational needs. I feel that many people don’t want to truly understand our struggles. Some of the schools they have been part of are not understanding of our situation. They don’t follow plans made with early help, or really listen to what we need to support us as a family. I do not receive disability living allowance benefits for my girls as I struggle to fill in the forms.

I feel let down by the whole system at the moment. I am stuck between a rock and a hard place, having to make difficult decisions about how to care for my children and get the income we need. The stress of always having to make tough decisions has a really big impact on us. People in positions of power need to learn to really listen to people’s circumstances and offer support, not restrictions.

Over the last few years, I have been part of the first Poverty Truth Commission in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and it’s changed my life. I think every council should run one. Lived experience voices should be heard in government. A Poverty Truth style programme at a Government level would bring MPs and people of lived experience of poverty into the same circle. MPs should attend Poverty Truth Commission launches and celebrations in their area and take part!

So, Prime Minister, I am writing to ask you to take the first step to really listen to those of us with experience of poverty, and to work with us for change.

From
Carrie, Poole

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