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Faith, justice & awesome activists: Niall reflects on his 28 years

Niall Cooper is stepping down after 28 years at Church Action on Poverty. He reflects on some remarkable highlights.

Niall in front of a Pilgrimage Against Poverty banner

How did you first come to be involved in Church Action on Poverty?

Niall: “My university degree had been in politics and religion, and I knew that I wanted to do that work – not just study it, but to do it. My passion was how the churches could make a difference.

“I worked on a project called the Churches National Housing Coalition, in 1991. I had helped set it up and Church Action on Poverty then took it on. I was doing community work in Hulme in Manchester at the time, and housing was the main issue.

“Then a few years later in 1997, the then director Paul Goggins was selected to stand as an MP, and I was appointed as director.”

What are some of your stand-out highlights?

Niall: “I think they come into four categories:

  • the big supporter moments
  • the really big policy wins
  • the moments of impact in local communities
  • and witnessing the inspiring activism of people with lived experience of poverty.

Supporter moments

“The two big supporter moments were the Pilgrimage Against Poverty in 1999, and the Tax Justice bus tour in partnership with Christian Aid in 2013. In 1999, we organised a nine-week pilgrimage from Iona to Westminster. Six people walked the whole way, but thousands of people joined along the route, for a mile or a day or a week.

“It was a significant thing for people to be part of, a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We took a political message and it was amazing – we had a big rally in Trafalgar Square, a service in St Martin-in-the-Fields and the six people who had walked all the way met with the Chancellor, Gordon Brown. 

“Then the Tax Justice Tour was amazing as well – we took a double decker bus around the country, engaging people in conversations. Both of those things really engaged people behind a powerful message, and created space for conversations.”

Above: The Pilgrimage Against Poverty reaches London, in 1999. Below: the Tax Justice Tour bus, in 2013
A traditional red double decker bus, for the tax justice tour

Big wins

“For big wins, I’m going to pick out two. The first was around financial inclusion work, under the New Labour government. We had meetings with a senior Treasury civil servant and we produced a report making the case for investing in affordable credit, as a result of which the Government then invested £120 million into credit unions. 

“The other big win was the campaign with Thrive Teesside, around irresponsible high-cost lending. That was led by the women of Thrive over the best part of ten years, with our support.

“The Government was not initially interested, but we built up a coalition with about 80 backbench MPs, and that persuaded the Financial Conduct Authority to properly regulate high-cost lending, and as a result several million pounds in compensation was paid to customers of three main lenders. And because their business model was then broken, that really saw them off.

A black and white photo of inflatable sharks being thrown in the air, outside Parliament

Community impact 

“Along with Oxfam, we introduced Participatory Budgeting to the UK and got the Government to fund us to set up a unit that advised local government. This resulted in over  120 participatory budgeting projects in local communities around the country, each involving hundreds of people – so tens of thousands of people had a direct say in how pots of money were spent in their communities. The Scottish Government then enshrined that approach in law in Scotland.

“A second big community impact success has been Your Local Pantry. We took a very local idea and have enabled 120 communities (and counting!) to open Local Pantries, which are bringing people together through food, and enabling great things to happen. The characteristic of both of those areas of work is that they empower communities to have control and dignity and agency.”

A Pantry member holds a basket beside a volunteer; both smile towards the camera

Seeing lived experience campaigners rise up 

“I draw huge inspiration from activists who have refused to give up – people like Wayne Green, Sarah Whitehead and Ashleigh May.

“Wayne spoke at the first National Poverty Hearing in 1996, and is still involved now. Sarah started off as a participant in one local project and now runs Community Pride in Salford, advises Joseph Rowntree Foundation and has trained and supported lots of other people to speak up. Ashleigh [pictured below] was made homeless and moved by her council 200 miles away from her community, but has been determined to speak up and create a space for other people, using her experience as an inspiration for making change.

“There are many other amazing people I could talk about as well!”

Ashleigh sitting in a Parliamentary committee room

What big changes have you seen - and what hasn't changed?

Niall: “People’s belief in political solutions has shifted, and certainly the harshness of the DWP at the moment is more brutal than ever. People who don’t experience poverty do not realise just how punitive and brutal it is. That punitive nature of Government systems has got worse. 

“As the state has pulled away, we’ve seen churches, charities and communities stepping up. Covid was the biggest example of that, where people stepped up. That trend has been for good and ill. Compared with 30 years ago, so many more churches are doing so much more, but there is still a pervasive attitude in places that it’s about tackling poverty one person at a time, individualising the problem and the solutions. 

“One of the things that has endured is the nature of poverty. As Wayne Green said in the 1990s, “poverty is a battle of invisibility and being blamed for society’s problems”. The context has changed, but that is as true now as it was then.

“Another area where we have made strides is in the growing recognition of the importance of prioritising lived experience voices. The Dear Prime Minister letters last year exemplified that – we were able to gather 12 to 15 people, well supported by six or seven organisations around the country, and that would not have happened ten or even five years ago.”

A row of people sitting behind a curving table, with a Let's End Poverty banner behind

What is your parting message to UK churches - and what are your own plans once you step down?

Niall: “The big task for churches is helping build a powerful movement in which people do feel they have agency, dignity and power, and in which they have enough allies to push back and say ‘enough; we are not going to take this any more’. Churches should invest in that, rather than sticking plaster solutions.

“As for my next steps… Well, in my 60s, I’ve started fell-running, and have just done the Yorkshire Three Peaks race, and I’ll also have some time for seeing family and travelling.

“I’m going to have a bit of a break and reflect on what I have learnt, but I am not stepping away from the anti-poverty movement. This is still what I am passionate about, and I still want to keep in touch with some of the amazing people I have met, but I also want to find out what’s the next challenge I can do.”

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

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Legacies: invest in a future without poverty

Ending poverty in the UK is a challenging task that requires long-term commitment. At Church Action on Poverty, we’re hugely grateful to the passionate, dedicated donors, activists and church leaders who stand with us. We know that many of you have been standing with us for an end to poverty for years or even decades.

In an increasingly difficult climate for charities and fundraising, our brilliant donors have continued enabling people to reclaim dignity, agency and power. Leaving a legacy is a powerful way of building on that dedication.

Since 2023, legacies have made a huge impact in our work. We’d like to thank Sheila Lovibond and her family – she left a hugely generous legacy which is supporting our work in churches and communities this year. Last year, another supporter made a significant donation from a legacy she’d received herself – enabling us to arrange the UK tour of the Dreams and Realities exhibition.

Let your legacy be one of hope and dignity. 

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Faith, justice & awesome activists: Niall reflects on his 28 years

In a queue, and newly homeless, I realised: this is where change begins

Legacies: invest in a future without poverty

In a queue, and newly homeless, I realised: this is where change begins

10,000 miles and counting: Wayne Walton’s fight to end homelessness across the UK

Wayne Walton estimates he has walked more than 10,000 miles alongside homeless individuals. Now, he’s calling for national action—urging the entire UK to wake up, mobilise, and demand solutions.

“That’s what homeless people do,” he says. “You never know how much you’ve walked, but with everything I’ve done, I’d be surprised if it were less.”

Determined to see homelessness not just reduced but eradicated, Wayne Walton is launching a nationwide movement. He’s encouraging people across the United Kingdom to stand together, demand accountability, and help fund a mobile emergency unit to assist people in crisis.

Wayne stands in front of his portrait
Wayne Walton in front of his portrait, at the launch of the Dreams and Realities exhibition in 2024

Wayne: It's a nationwide crisis

Homelessness is a national emergency, with rising numbers in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Glasgow—and virtually every town across the UK. Government figures show that rough sleeping has surged since the pandemic, yet support systems remain broken and underfunded.

Wayne Walton believes it’s time for bold action, led by people with lived experience—not just policymakers and charities. He urges cities and communities beyond Yorkshire to join the fight.

“We cannot wait for another crisis. In March 2025, homelessness is worse than ever. The government keeps making false promises, but nothing is changing. We need a nationwide awakening.”

Walking through hardship: Wayne's journey to advocacy

Wayne Walton’s personal battle with homelessness began in 2019, when violence and racism drove him from his home in northeast London. With nowhere safe to go—and his social security payments stopped—he was forced into rough sleeping.

He soon discovered that up to 100 people a night were sleeping in a shopping centre, relying on faith groups for food. That moment shifted his perspective forever.

“Standing in that queue, I felt like I shouldn’t be there. But then I realised—this is exactly where change begins.”

Determined to help, Wayne Walton connected people with aid organisations, gathered a team of Christian activists, and petitioned the government in December 2019—only to be told homelessness couldn’t be solved even in a decade.

Then, in March 2020, the pandemic proved them wrong.

Wayne: The pandemic showed solutions are possible

Within three weeks, the UK government rolled out the “Everyone In” policy—placing thousands of rough sleepers into accommodation. The same Government that had claimed this was impossible for ten years had solved the issue in days.

Wayne Walton became a key part of this emergency response, volunteering at 5am daily to help homeless individuals find shelter. Alongside activists, he even helped set up a temporary village for those missed by councils—transforming an abandoned dairy into shelter with donated blankets, tents, and supplies.

When local officials tried to shut the effort down, media exposure forced them to accommodate those in need. Wayne Walton stayed for a year, distributing aid via a donated minibus.

Expanding the mission beyond Yorkshire

In 2021, a family tragedy sent Wayne Walton overseas. When he returned to the UK, his sister in Sheffield encouraged him to stay for a while—a move that unexpectedly reshaped his mission.

While walking Sheffield’s streets, he felt a spiritual calling—a divine push to finish the advocacy work he had started years before.

Since then, Wayne Walton has developed counseling and evangelism programs, helping homeless individuals nationwide navigate local services. He continues to move between sofa-surfing and rough sleeping, yet remains driven by faith.

“I have hope. That’s what Jesus gives us. God has a plan.”

Wayne's plan for a mobile emergency unit

Wayne Walton’s next step is big—a van-based emergency unit capable of reaching homeless individuals across the UK.

“Too many people can’t get from A to B, can’t transport their belongings, and can’t access support. A mobile unit would change that.”

He recalls helping a blind ex-Muslim man struggling with trauma and anxiety—terrified to leave his home. A mobile response team could bring care directly to people like him.

This is not just about Sheffield—it’s about every city, every town. Homelessness is not a regional issue, it’s a national crisis.

Wayne Walton urges the public across the nation to step up and push for real change.

“Einstein said insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results. The government’s approach isn’t working—people have the answers.”

How you can get involved

Wayne Walton’s group meets every Friday at Barker’s Pool, Sheffield, S1 1EF (6pm-9pm), inviting individuals to organise change beyond Yorkshire. He’s calling for people from all across the UK to join.

They aim to:

  • Fund a mobile emergency unit
  • Organise rallies nationwide
  • Demand government accountability

The movement’s WhatsApp group has 75 members, and supporters can email:

praiseuk3@gmail.com

ukcities4christ@gmail.com

Upcoming national events

  • May 25: UK Prayer Festival at Barker’s Pool, Sheffield
  • August 23-25: National Rally—Praise UK (Christian music festival)

“We are seeking the greatest sustainable revival movement in the history of God. We pray daily at 8am, calling the UK to pray together for an hour—asking for sustainable change.”

Help Fund the Mobile Emergency Unit – Donate Today!

Wayne says: “Homelessness is a national emergency – we must act now! We’re raising funds to create a mobile emergency unit that will provide direct support, transport, food and urgent care for rough sleepers across the UK.”

  • Donate today.
  • Share & spread the word!
  • Join us in Sheffield every Friday!

Homelessness isn’t inevitable—it’s preventable. The UK must wake up and demand real change.

Together, we can make a difference. Thank you for standing with us!

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Faith, justice & awesome activists: Niall reflects on his 28 years

In a queue, and newly homeless, I realised: this is where change begins

Legacies: invest in a future without poverty

Sharing Power to Shape Mission

Activists work to shape policies of the future

Are churches losing faith in low-income communities?

Church Action On Poverty North East 2025 AGM

The activists Speaking Truth to Power in York

We’re listening!

Briefing: New Government data further undermines its cuts to UK’s vital lifelines

The church must be at the heart of the mishmash of local life

Volunteers needed!

Urgent: Ask your church to display this poster on Sunday

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let's End Poverty logo: text in black, with a pink triangle logo

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Activists work to shape policies of the future

Change happens when people come together to make it happen. Activists with experience of poverty have been doing just that, with three UK universities.

Members of the Speaking Truth To Power panel took part in a national event at London School of Economics with academics and practitioners, and then delivered online workshops at the University of Staffordshire and the University of Salford.

Panel member Wayne Green, from Shoreham by Sea in West Sussex, reflects on the two most recent events.

Four people behind a desk, looking at the camera. Two are standing; two sitting.
Wayne, Penny, Steve and Tracy at the London event last winter. Two more events have now taken place at other universities.

Wayne: we're speaking to tomorrow's decision-makers

“Why universities? We felt it was important, as activists seeking to end all forms of poverty and exclusion. It is important for students who could be tomorrow’s decision makers, policy makers and future leaders, to fully understand how and why we do what we do and how to challenge power structures, with a human-centred experience besides the academic rational perspective.

“The work at times I found was slow, and now and then disagreements got in the way. But I was learning to dump much of my professional experience, relearning to be more empathetic and take more of a back seat, and try not to see it all from my perspective.

“It was hard for me. But each time we met I could see that I was changing a little more my perspective. Slowly but surely we started to gel really well as a group. And I now understand why the planning took time.

“Finally, we had built two two-hour programmes. We had full control of the design, agenda, subject matter, and timings, and we chose who best to speak on each topic. It was a really fully human-centred, collaborative and equally balanced process.

“The workshops were with the Universities of Staffordshire and Salford.

“We were there by experience to share – for example, to show what the difference is between experience and academic
knowledge, also to show the value of real experience of poverty, the pain, how to avoid tokenism, how to navigate power dynamics, types of power flows, and the value of listening by those in power.

Wayne: You have so much power

“I felt all the lecturers and departments were highly motivated, and positive in working with us, which gave us much confidence.

“We wanted to highlight to the students that they do have power, and how to be more politically active.

“Often your experience and knowledge is more than the power-holders’ or decision-makers’. We showed real-life examples of how people in poverty can still have a voice and make changes.

“For example, we told how we had attended events at Parliament, and led on campaigns in our local communities, and spoke about our experiences of campaigns at local and national levels. It was important to show them what is often missed or not shown.

“It is important for students to see and learn from real-life activists in poverty, as this sets the agenda. They too can change the world.

“I wanted to say, ‘You have so much power, it’s all around us up for grabs. Look at us, look at what we are doing. Do not be afraid.’ As I noted, poverty is a battle of invisibility, it must be won, we must be seen and heard.

Wayne: what I've learned

“What have I really learned from all of this? I think I have learned to be more humble to the other members.

“Even though I find it hard to show, I do really care about them all in the years we have grown with each other. At the end of the day who am I, but a poor weak man offering my small bit of experience to such large problems. But I do believe change can happen and the younger generations have so much more to offer than I for that change.”

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Faith, justice & awesome activists: Niall reflects on his 28 years

In a queue, and newly homeless, I realised: this is where change begins

Legacies: invest in a future without poverty

Sharing Power to Shape Mission

Activists work to shape policies of the future

Are churches losing faith in low-income communities?

Church Action On Poverty North East 2025 AGM

The activists Speaking Truth to Power in York

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let's End Poverty logo: text in black, with a pink triangle logo

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

We’re listening!

During 2024, we carried out a survey and some in-depth conversations with some of our partners and supporters. Communications Manager Liam Purcell shares some of what we learned.

We know that, in order to end poverty in the UK, we need to be part of a really wide and powerful movement. To help us link people and groups together and support that movement, we need to listen and learn as much as we can from all the people we work with. So we’ve been finding out what we can from all kinds of people – from loyal supporters who’ve been involved for decades, to churches and donors who have only just got involved. We’d like to thank everyone who shared their thoughts with us.

One of the most important things we wanted to hear about was values – what drives people to get involved in tackling poverty and working for a better world? People spoke of:

  • Faith and Christian values, often with a  specific reference to the example of Jesus.

  • Empathy, compassion and social justice.

  • Real anger and frustration about injustice and inequality.

  • A moral obligation to take action, often because they were aware of their own privileged position.

  • The importance of solidarity and collective action.

Often, we heard that people got involved because Church Action on Poverty’s values align closely with those of their church or project. We know that those shared values are the most powerful motivator to bring us together and challenge injustice.

In our conversations, we explored that idea in more depth – learning about where our work overlaps with other movements seeking peace and justice, and hearing about what makes people feel connected to those wider movements:

  • Signing or sharing petitions.
  • Meeting with other people in person.
  • Being inspired by stories of what other people are doing.
  • Praying with other people.
  • Being part of online communities.

We also heard about people’s churches. We learned that many supporters hold leadership positions in churches, but only a small proportion of churches are actively engaged with Church Action on Poverty – there’s a big opportunity to for us to do more in partnership with local churches. We also found that most of our supporters are in ‘mainline’ traditional churches. Could we find ways to better serve other churches too, for example independent evangelical churches and Black majority churches?

Now we hope we can build on what we’ve learned and the shared values we’ve identified, to work even more effectively in partnership with all of our valued supporters and allies.

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Faith, justice & awesome activists: Niall reflects on his 28 years

In a queue, and newly homeless, I realised: this is where change begins

Legacies: invest in a future without poverty

The church must be at the heart of the mishmash of local life

What are the challenges and opportunities in your neighbourhood? And where does your church fit in?

Those are two of the questions that people at the Dandelion Community church have been pondering and acting on in recent weeks, as they try to build one another up, and make change happen.

In February, the church hosted a Vision Day. Church leaders were there; so too were the various organisations that use the building through the week; so too were other local groups; and so too were wider partners.

A mug with a Dandelion on it, beside a flyer reading Wythenshawe Against Poverty

Dandelion: A hope-filled, bustling day

It was a hope-filled, upbeat day, bustling with conversation and bubbling with possibilities and ideas. It was a reminder of how much energy and ingenuity there is in communities, and how much power there is in bringing people together.

Revd Kate Gray, minister at Dandelion, says: “Feedback has been that it was a really positive and creative day, because of the opportunities to connect with all sorts of different organisations that might not have met each other before. It felt very creative and constructive.”

She highlights two particular areas of work that have grown from the day:

  1. An exciting collaboration around using green energy to reduce local bills
  2. A women’s leadership programme
A busy church hall with people chatting: some sitting at tables, some standing.

Green energy

“One strand is looking at community-owned renewable energy – a collection of local residents and local groups, including some from Dandelion, are working together on that with a charity partner and a university, and we’ve had the first community workshop.

“We are hoping, particularly with local residents who live immediately around the building, to develop some short and long term responses to poverty by lowering bills. We want Dandelion to become a zero-carbon church and hub, and we have a feasibility study looking at things like ground pumps or a form of hydro-power, and we want solar panels on the roof. 

“That would reduce our bills and respond to climate change in the next few years. There’s lots of interest in that in churches and community groups in Wythenshawe and across the wider area of east, central and south Manchester. We would lower our bills but also produce enough surplus energy so that can go to local households, local schools, or other buildings.”

Women's leadership

“Another piece of work is around women’s leadership, and how women want to organise themselves to respond to poverty through collective action, through families, households, social enterprises etc.

“There’s a stream of work with three women-led organisations at Dandelion developing around that. One of those is called Wythenshawe Central and is now a wider network for people and organisations across Wythenshawe. That’s responding specifically to Wythenshawe town centre redevelopment – what do local people need to be in that development?”

Four people at a table. Two are hugging.

Church's role in the community

Dandelion is in a low-income neighbourhood in Wythenshawe, right beside Manchester Airport, and is eager to play a positive role across a wide range of issues.

Kate says “We are developing a church and community hub with a range of partnerships. There are independent partners who are charities, CICs, local enterprises, and we share some values together. 

“We want to explore more seriously a small governance-based organisation that includes the Dandelion church, includes the URC more widely, and also includes and has clear representation from community organisations that are based in and around Dandelion. We could develop a locally led, locally steered partnership together (with faith and non-faith groups), where we act together and make bids for pieces of work we want to make happen, and that we have identified together.

“Our role as a church here is to be in the mix. Our role is to be part of conversations with a range of other people and – where those conversations don’t yet exist – to look at creating opportunities to host or facilitate or encourage or generate those. Our role is to have a diverse mish-mash of partnerships and also to do that in a way that’s sensitive to all partners and not necessarily church-led.

A view from the back of a busy church hall, with many people sitting and standing and chatting.

“Also, our role is to ensure that Christians who are involved in the life of Wythenshawe are not separate from that. The role of faith is made clear through the practice of faith. In our context that looks like this; in other contexts it might look different. 

“There are a lot of churches with buildings in Wythenshawe and we want to encourage collective action to support the use of public space and to value public space for communities to come together to act together. We can do things like encourage people to access support for their mental health, or other services. Church has a role to play and to be an acknowledgement to God.

“I would say it’s clear to me that the Holy Spirit has made it quite easy for us to do this work, because we are open to change and able to adapt our building, our worship, our language, format and style of being church. If we want to keep everything the same, it’s harder for God to act.”

A jigsaw graphic showing different local issues: eg uneven power relations, dignity, boundaries, community experiences

Dandelion in partnership

The Dandelion Community church is a URC church in Wythenshawe. Church Action on Poverty has partnered with the church for many years, and it was a central partner in the Church on the Margins programme.

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Faith, justice & awesome activists: Niall reflects on his 28 years

In a queue, and newly homeless, I realised: this is where change begins

Legacies: invest in a future without poverty

Sharing Power to Shape Mission

Activists work to shape policies of the future

Are churches losing faith in low-income communities?

Church Action On Poverty North East 2025 AGM

The activists Speaking Truth to Power in York

We’re listening!

Briefing: New Government data further undermines its cuts to UK’s vital lifelines

The church must be at the heart of the mishmash of local life

Volunteers needed!

Urgent: Ask your church to display this poster on Sunday

The town of 250,000 that revolutionised its food system

Say no to these immoral cuts, built on weasel words and spin

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let's End Poverty logo: text in black, with a pink triangle logo

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

The town of 250,000 that revolutionised its food system

The town of Reading, in Berkshire, has revolutionised its community food work in the past two years.

Faith Christian Group has opened eight Your Local Pantries with nearby churches, and plans to open two more – with the aim of ensuring everyone in the town has one within walking distance.

Andy Dickens, director of FCG, says it became a charity in the 1990s, focused on providing support for local homeless people. It then began running a home-delivery food bank, and Pantries then felt a natural next step.

An aerial view of Reading, with two group photos overlaid. One shows a group of volunteers in a line; the other shows four people around a table smiling.

Everyone in Reading should be able to walk to a Pantry

He says: “We deliver food parcels to about 170 households each week, to people who have been referred to us in crisis.

“From that, about two years ago, we started our first Pantry. The vision was the next step up for people to get out of poverty but also with wrap-around services and support.

“Norcot was our first one, and in the subsequent 24 months we’ve gone to eight. 

“The food bank is emergency supplies of food for people in crisis, and the Pantry is the next step up. People pay £5 and get about £25 worth of groceries. There’s dignity, choice and hope there and we encourage churches to see Pantries as part of their mission to the community. 

“The churches collect and get volunteers etc. We have about 80 volunteers giving 240 hours a week of time. This makes the pantries sustainable in the long-term.

“We facilitate and support to ensure each Pantry has wrap-around services, like assistance and advice. We work with Christians Against Poverty who help people out of debt, as well as a furniture charity, Citizens advice and other community groups that do things like cookery courses. We are currently trying to migrate to healthy Pantries, to get more fresh food in. 

“We have eight Pantries because we are a town of about 250,000 people. Most people we work with are lonely or isolated and most do not have transport, so we want people to be able to walk to have this opportunity.

“In estates or low-income communities, the Pantries are all within walking distance. And when we have ten, anyone in Reading should be able to access a Pantry. The ninth will open imminently, and the tenth will probably open in the autumn. We are engaged with the council as well; they love the model.”

A posed head & shoulders photo of Andy Dickens, director of FCG in Reading. A man in a blue shirt and glasses is smiling to the camera.
Andy Dickens, director of FCG in Reading

Reading Pantries build community

Andy says the Pantries have really strengthened community in their neighbourhoods. Last autumn, members at Coley Park Pantry spent several months crocheting a Christmas tree, which was unveiled at a special community event for local residents, Pantry members and church members.

He adds: “At Norcot there is a real community with friends who use the church hall for other activities. There is a great cake baker in that Pantry and they bring in cakes. It’s people getting back to knowing their neighbours. It’s local people helping local people.

“Each Pantry has stories of people who have journeyed with them and joined different craft clubs, parent and toddler groups, other groups, or joined churches.

“Without the Pantry work, they would never have come across each other and joined in with other things. We had one man who came on Friday, and he had not seen anyone since being diagnosed with terminal cancer on the Tuesday. We helped someone with pension benefits to get £10,000 of back payments that been due, as they were on the wrong benefit.

“Someone else said they wouldn’t need to come back, because they had got out of severe debt. It’s little shoots of life and the vision is to support people with subsidised food, healthy lifestyles and support them on a journey of faith.

What Pantries mean for churches in Reading

“When we set up, churches see this as part of their social aid action arm, making a meaningful and intentional difference. There are people finding each other, finding faith, finding connection and finding friendship.

“The churches we are dealing with are getting people across the threshold who would never come on a Sunday morning, and they are meeting new people and new connections.

“It’s a great opportunity for local churches to make a difference to people struggling, and really support people on a journey of faith. Churches see it as part of their mission.”

FCG is also exploring getting more involved in advocacy and helping people do campaigning work.

Andy says: “The charity is thinking through what’s important to us from a Christian perspective. Jesus showed mercy to individuals but more than that he brought God’s justice to society, so we are working deliberately and intentionally with MPs, councillors, national charities to try to get more understanding of what’s happening and formulating our thoughts.

“We want to be able to look back in ten years and see how we have made a difference and raised voices.”

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Faith, justice & awesome activists: Niall reflects on his 28 years

In a queue, and newly homeless, I realised: this is where change begins

Legacies: invest in a future without poverty

Sharing Power to Shape Mission

Activists work to shape policies of the future

Are churches losing faith in low-income communities?

Church Action On Poverty North East 2025 AGM

The activists Speaking Truth to Power in York

We’re listening!

Briefing: New Government data further undermines its cuts to UK’s vital lifelines

The church must be at the heart of the mishmash of local life

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let's End Poverty logo: text in black, with a pink triangle logo

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Say no to these immoral cuts, built on weasel words and spin

Labour said they would put disabled people at the heart of everything they do. But instead they have shoved us to the very edges.

The proposed cuts to Britain’s social security system are immoral, are deeply harmful to some of the country’s poorest people, and are based on misleading spin.

Disabled activists who work with and advise Church Action on Poverty say the further dismantling of crucial welfare support threatens to impoverish them, and flies in the face of Government promises and thorough evidence.

Stef Benstead, Sydnie Corley and Mary Passeri are all involved in the Speaking Truth to Power programme and other campaigns, and have joined the growing calls all over the country for the threatened cuts to be cancelled.

Cut-outs of Stef, Mary and Sydnie. Text above says: "Labour said they would put disabled people at the heart of everything they do. But instead they have shoved us to the very edges."

No to cuts: Now honour the promise

In December, Stef, Sydnie, Mary and others met the minister for disability, Sir Stephen Timms MP, who had said that disabled people would be at the heart of the Government’s actions.

Church Action on Poverty is urging Stephen Timms to honour that pledge, and today we are asking supporters to ask their MPs to make similar calls. 

Stef: They're deliberately misleading the public to buy support for cuts

Stef said: “Labour said they would put disabled people at the heart of everything they do, but instead they’ve shoved us to the very edges. They’re using a lot of spin and weasel words, but it is worse than empty rhetoric. It is deliberately misleading the public in order to buy support for immoral, harmful cuts.

“It really is a bogus consultation. The things they aren’t consulting on, and the assumptions made behind the things that they are consulting on, make the results a foregone conclusion. The cuts will happen, and they’re not interested in anything other than pretending to care about the people affected.

“Anyone can launch a consultation and say that it will be ‘close’. But to launch a consultation when you’ve already stated that there is no consultation on the ‘four-point’ criterion, and you’ve already decided how much money it will save, is not an honest consultation.”

Sydnie: We know the DWP does not score people correctly

Sydnie highlighted that in recent years, hundreds of thousands of people who were initially refused PIP were wrongly rejected, and had the refusal overturned at appeal, showing that the Government has a terrible track record at assessing people’s health and disability.

She says: “The DWP does not understand people’s conditions. Their ‘professionals’ are not qualified in many disabilities or in who can receive what payment, and what jobs people are capable of. The waiting list for PIP is too long.

“Too many people have to appeal where they were originally awarded hardly any points, then achieve the proper high amount in each category via the appeal. This waiting time is even longer and one that is degrading and not accessible to all, and this whole process is too much of a strain on people’s physical and mental health.

“How on earth are they going to reassess everyone, with what cost, as there are not enough staff as it is. We know the DWP does not score people correctly. They are unqualified for this job and under too much strain to cope.

“How on earth are they going to reassess everyone, with what cost, as there are not enough staff as it is. We know the DWP do not score people correctly. They are unqualified for this job and under too much strain to cope.

Mary: These cuts apply pressure not to live any more

Mary said she was terrified that the changes were coming in at the same time as the assisted dying legislation. She said: “The benefits system should be there as a safety net. I totally agree it should not be an alternative way of living, But it needs to be a stronger net, with fewer tears to fall through!”

“Now this is happening and the assisted dying laws are coming in as well. You can foresee a system where they will say they’ll give me benefits for another five years, and that’s it – and then in the context of assisted dying, see what pressure that puts on people not to live any more!”

Speaking Truth to Power panelists meet with minister Stephen Timms
Mary (back left), Sydnie (remotely) and Stef (middle left) were part of a group that met Stephen Timms (far right) in December. Now they're urging him to be true to his word.

Stef dissects the Government's spin on cuts

Stef said much of the Government’s statement this week was hollow spin. 

She says: “You can be as harsh a government as you like and still pretend to the masses that you are nice, really, because you support the ‘greatest needs’ – just not the ‘also great but we’ve decided we can’t afford them’ needs.”

“The fact is that all the evidence shows that people assessed as unfit for work – whether required to prepare for work or not – are demonstrably not fit for work. Consequently any cuts to support for these people means that Labour is not protecting those who cannot work. And they are spinning this by claiming that we are people who are of non-genuine need.

“For example, I don’t receive the Daily Living component of PIP. Whilst I think this is wrong (I can only shower once a week and have to pay an assistant to cook for me, as well as doing my cleaning, tidying, washing up, and laundry which aren’t assessed by PIP), it means that I don’t qualify for the Health Element of Universal Credit under Labour’s proposed system.

“Yet, I’ve been unable to work since 2011. Various attempts to work have led to suicidal depression as I struggle with the demands of working not even eight hours a week.”

She also said the Government’s claim that the work capability assessment was binary was untrue, as it already has three possible outcomes: fit for work; unfit for work but fit to prepare for work; unfit either to work or prepare for work. And she criticised the suggestion that the number of PIP awards was not sustainable.

“How does that work? Is Liz Kendall saying that I am not sustainable? Too many people have long-term needs so the problem is that we’re unsustainable for each other? Taking PIP away from people who depend on it does not help people who depend upon it. It does not make PIP more sustainable long-term for them; rather, their lives have been made less sustainable.”

The system should not push people into poverty

Sydnie said: “We should be able to entrust our Government to ensure there is a system that is fair, prosperous, and sustainable, which is looking forward and grows with the modern world, that has empathy and deeper understanding of how to support everyone who is living here.

“We should all have a future, to feel worth and again, to not feel a burden on society, and to not be judged unfairly for this. Everyone has some right to self actualisation, to have dignity, to be heard and listened to, and also have a legal right to not be pushed into poverty, to have a good standard of living environmentally and mentally.

“People who live in Britain have fought for human rights, equal rights, racism, gender rights, equality, a fair social system, disabled rights and far far more. Is money more important than people’s lives and living experience? The Government has control and yet deems us as nothing more than a waste of money, draining the public’s purse.”

Sydnie said most jobs did not reflect the flexibility that disabled people would inevitably need. 

“How on earth can the Government create jobs that are flexible, inclusive, and offering reasonable adjustment – such as time off at short notice with no repercussions, full support and at minimum wage and above?

“Will the Government make working places hire staff at their cost, where their insurance has to be increased, with new risk assessments, buying specialist equipment, having another member of staff to stand by at any time to replace their shift?

“And the other measures won’t make people better: covering child care costs won’t cure people; reducing benefits won’t cure people; voluntary work won’t cure people; adding more support with CVs, interviews or short basic courses won’t cure people – and most people know how to do these things. Disabled people are not uneducated as the Government seems to believe. 

“Can’t the Government comprehend that some people are simply unable to work, but need to have the same rights as everyone, and to stop cuts to supportive programs, outreach centres, social workers, and accessibility to all.”

Mary: They understand us but they're doing it anyway!

Mary says: “Will job training or loss of money take away my son’s autism? Will it cure his health issues? Will it cure cerebral palsy and learning disabilities? It will not change any of that!

“I would love to work, to be back doing research work and group work, but how can I when some days I cannot even remember the names of people I am with? If I was employed, the employer would also need to employ someone else too, to cover when I was too ill to work. Small businesses can’t afford to employ people who can’t work regularly, and big businesses are not going to.

“I feel totally and utterly let down, because when the Conservatives were putting forward cuts and the UN was saying what they were doing was unlawful and should be stopped, Labour were jumping all over them trying to say it was all wrong. 

“Now they’re in power, not only have they ignored that, but they are being worse! People say the Government needs to talk to people to understand, but that’s not enough – they have talked to people, they do understand, they’re speaking to people – but they’re doing this anyway! It’s all window dressing.”

“I already get less Universal Credit than my rent, so it’s essential I get PIP, or I would not have anything to eat! I get the standard rate of Universal Credit, as I’m unable to work. At the moment I’m not expected to work, or look for work. My son Adriano is on the special higher rate, and he’s not expected to work.

“I will be in their target group, because it’s people with severe aches and pains they will target. Most of the jobs available in York are coffee shop jobs – how could I work in a coffee shop, having to be on my feet and flexible. I can have good days, but last time I did something exertive, when I went to London for a meeting, I was in bed for nearly a week!

“For me, you can probably get four good hours out of me, but in that time I’d need to get washed and dressed, eat and get to where I would need to be. That could take three hours already… who’s going to give me a job for an hour?!”

“And are we saying people’s only reason for being is to go to work, because then when some people finish work, we’re in so much pain and cannot look after our family or do anything in life. Are they really saying that’s okay? As a disabled person, don’t I deserve a work-life balance like anyone else?

“I know it’s hard to arrange a really fair system, but punishing people who cannot work will not make them work. And for people who would like to work but are disabled, support needs to go to employers to enable that. Telling people to work when no employer would touch them is not going to help.

“After we met Stephen Timms, we were at least tentatively hopeful that there may be some real exchange. The Government’s actions would quash that hope. 

“Why can’t we have a Government that is prepared to give real protections and quality of life to disabled people? If the Government could bring themselves to stop scapegoating and instead invest in bettering the situation for disabled people, then perhaps there would be less pressure on social and health services.

“This investment could begin with education. Children with disabilities have been facing cuts to essential services that would allow them to benefit from an education thus refusing them any real aspiration and ambition.”

Stef, Sydnie and Mary are members of the Speaking Truth to Power programme coordinated by Church Action on Poverty.

Stef is also the author of Second Class Citizens: The Treatment of Disabled People in Austerity Britain

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Faith, justice & awesome activists: Niall reflects on his 28 years

In a queue, and newly homeless, I realised: this is where change begins

Legacies: invest in a future without poverty

Sharing Power to Shape Mission

Activists work to shape policies of the future

Are churches losing faith in low-income communities?

Church Action On Poverty North East 2025 AGM

The activists Speaking Truth to Power in York

We’re listening!

Briefing: New Government data further undermines its cuts to UK’s vital lifelines

The church must be at the heart of the mishmash of local life

Volunteers needed!

Urgent: Ask your church to display this poster on Sunday

The town of 250,000 that revolutionised its food system

Say no to these immoral cuts, built on weasel words and spin

Dreams and Realities in our context

How we can radically boost recruitment of working class clergy

SPARK newsletter, winter 2024-25

Meeting the minister

19 new Pantries are reaching thousands of people

78 pics: Pantry members get creative to end poverty

Dreams & Realities: reflections on an amazing tour

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let's End Poverty logo: text in black, with a pink triangle logo

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Dreams and Realities in our context

Revd Amanda Mallen reflects on the impact Church Action on Poverty Sunday made in her community.

During the week following Church Action on Poverty Sunday on 2 March 2025, I held three informal worship workshops.

The aim was to help people engage with poverty in many of its forms and the impact it has on individuals and communities and the wider impact overall.

I used the Dreams and Realities artwork (above) to open up the subject and share the lived experience of those featured in the pictures. Telling their stories was a special and thought-provoking time for me personally. I also shared some of my own lived experience of growing up and living in poverty and how that impacted the choices I have made. Some of these choices have been big life-changing decisions yet I found that for me the small everyday choices are more impactful and often more hurtful to make.

Doing this alongside scripture reading and prayers, and by singing a couple of songs that speak into the aims of the sessions, gave it a real sense of importance. Looking after and standing up for the poor is a biblical imperative as I see it.

In two out of three of the sessions (in churches where the flexible layout allowed it) I asked the participants to create their own Dreams and Realities work. Some chose to draw,  some chose written words, and I wanted them to be able to think and communicate in a way that was comfortable and accessible to them. None of us are artists, and so the participation and willingness to share of the participants was really important.

We also had open discussion during the service about what poverty looked like, and I shared some local statistics. I had also done collective worship sessions (assemblies) in three primary schools the week before and was encouraged to hear that the children didn’t know that where they lived was such a high area of deprivation.

We ended the service with prayers and I felt like those who participated had a better understanding of what we are trying to achieve. I would have liked more participants but it didn’t seem to be publicised well enough this time, so I plan to lead a quiet day a bit later in the year in our local park (weather permitting) which is based around the Dreams and Realities theme. Hopefully with more time and more participants the message will be further embedded, and the stigma and embarrassment of poverty will be lifted so that more people can stand up and stare their stories. Supporting each other in this way and enabling people to voice their concerns and opinions will hopefully lead into action, and an end to poverty for all.


Revd Amanda Mallen is a vicar in Walsall and a member of Church Action on Poverty’s Council of Management.

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Faith, justice & awesome activists: Niall reflects on his 28 years

In a queue, and newly homeless, I realised: this is where change begins

Legacies: invest in a future without poverty

How we can radically boost recruitment of working class clergy

Our communities are awash with talent - but Churches need to offer new routes to ministry.

Father Alex Frost calls for bold thinking from national leaders.

Father Alex Frost in church
I have never received a standing ovation before and nor did I expect one at my recent trip to London for the Church of England General Synod.
 
But that is what happened after my February address to the gathering of Archbishops, Bishops, Clergy and Laity on the subject of working class vocations and people training for ministry.
 
I’d like to think it wasn’t just light relief because I was wedged in between the difficult debate about safeguarding on one side, and the ultra dry debate about church processes on the other. But maybe that I struck a chord about how and who we recruit for lay and ordained ministry.

Communities are awash with talent

The crux of my address and Private Members Motion was to challenge the Church of England and all Churches in the UK that perhaps a ‘one size fits all’ approach to learning is not always in the interest of the church or the individual selected to train for ministry.
 
My key argument came from a place of experience and the fact I left school at 15 years old and had no qualifications. Although I went on to have fabulous career in retail management with Argos, the fact that my academic portfolio was as empty as some of our struggling churches became a huge stumbling block to my pathway to ordination.
 
And so at Synod I presented my call for a radical change to how churches go about things, and argued that there was a rich harvest of talent and skills from people in our working class communities that – as yet – had been seriously under represented. 

I asked them to do more to recognise the skills and potential of Christians in an urban setting. After all, these places are awash with entrepreneurs and down-to-earth hard-working people.

I'd love to see clergy apprenticeships

But why do our churches need a working-class cleric or pastor? Is this just another attempt to increase our diversity levels, looking a little more favourable with the secular world?
 

Well that could be a fair critique, but I do truly believe that more working class ministers would be a much needed injection of talent and enthusiasm that offers something different to the academic degree model that exists in many church institutions of all denominations. 

And just in case anyone was thinking, “hang on a minute I’m working class and I’ve got a degree, what on earth is Fr Alex going on about?” I’d just like to add that of course many working class people are academic and they do have degrees, and that is wonderful.

 
Ultimately I would love to see all churches offer a number of work-streams for ministerial training. Of course keeping the academic pathway for classroom based learning, but also opening up the opportunities and possibilities of an apprenticeship type model. Offering context-based learning, hands on endeavour, where the experience from the ‘real world’ is soaked up and nurtured to create culturally aware people fit for church ministry.

An encouragement to all working class Christians

When I stood at the platform I was unsure how this idea would be received, as after all The Church of England isn’t particularly regarded as a instrument of change. Anything but, if the truth be-known. However you can imagine my delight when people stood to their feet in approval and passed my motion with 100% support.
 
The proof now will be in the pudding and I eagerly look forward to discovering what the ministry division comes up with. But in the meantime I do sincerely hope that if nothing else it has encouraged working class Christians who doubt their ability to serve their church, to confidently remind them that, YES YOU CAN!!

Father Alex Frost is Vicar of St Matthew Church in Burnley; is a member of General Synod; host of The God Cast; and author of Our Daily Bread: from Argos to the Altar.

Church On The Margins work

Since 2020, Church Action on Poverty has been researching how the UK’s denominations allocate their resources, and listening to people and churches in communities on the margins.

Churches, at their best, are thriving hubs at the heart of their communities – open and inclusive to all believers and everyone else. Churches at their best connect with and support the local area through local collaborations, shared spaces and resources, and genuine community. 

But we found that low-income communities are being disproportionately affected by church closures, and this has ramifications for Christians and entire neighbourhoods. If national church leaders reinvest instead of retreating, then we know churches can help whole communities to thrive and build better futures.

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive

Faith, justice & awesome activists: Niall reflects on his 28 years

In a queue, and newly homeless, I realised: this is where change begins

Legacies: invest in a future without poverty

Sharing Power to Shape Mission

Activists work to shape policies of the future

Are churches losing faith in low-income communities?

Church Action On Poverty North East 2025 AGM

The activists Speaking Truth to Power in York

We’re listening!

Briefing: New Government data further undermines its cuts to UK’s vital lifelines

The church must be at the heart of the mishmash of local life

SPARK newsletter summer 2025

Let's End Poverty logo: text in black, with a pink triangle logo

Let’s End Poverty: what comes next?

Vacancy: Chief Executive