28 Feb 2025

Our February update to what’s been going on at Church on the Street:

Our Work with NHS in Focus

Radio 4 Sunday looked at a report by Christian think tank Theos, arguing that the NHS could rely more on faith groups to help deliver services and provide support around them. As a case study, reporter Linda Walker travelled to our church in Burnley to talk to us about the pioneering work we do with the NHS and other partner agencies. Bishop Mick said:

“What we do here wouldn’t fit in every Church, in some churches there’s a barrier already there … what we do is we take that barrier out the way, but we don’t compromise our faith.”

Listen to the full item on Radio 4 Sunday

Saying “Thank You” to Volunteers

In February, we invited all our volunteers to a Volunteer Day lunch and catch-up to say THANK YOU for the amazing work they do.

Volunteers are absolutely essential to what we do at Church on the Street, from being able to provide people with hot meals, to running essential support groups and services. Volunteers are the friendly faces people meet when they come into our church, cafe or charity shops.

Without volunteers we could not hope to fulfil our vision:

To be the light of Jesus Christ shining in the gaps of injustice and see the poor raised out of poverty.

Interesting volunteering with us? Get in touch:
Apply to Volunteer

Dealing with Rise in Prison Recalls

The number of prisoners sent back to jail after release has more than doubled in the last decade. Sky News came to visit us to find out about some of the difficulties this causes in our work with ex-prisoners to help them reintegrate back into society. One church member told them:

“I’ve met a lad was on a GPS track and tag, and you need to charge them up every day, and because they released him homeless, and he couldn’t charge his tag up, and he got recalled for that.”

Chief Inspector of Probation, Martin Jones, said at times recalling prisoners was the “easiest thing to do,” and he was not confident that recall was being used only as a mechanism to protect the public.

Watch the full Sky News report

New Book: Walk in My Shoes

A new book by our Bishop Mick Fleming will be released on 20 March 2025.

Walk in My Shoes: Stories of Miraculous Transformation is a follow up to Mick’s first bestselling book, Blown Away.

Where Blown Away: From Drug Dealer to Life Bringer told the story of Mick’s own life and remarkable transformation by God’s grace, Walk in My Shoes tells the equally remarkable stories of the people Mick has met on his journey.

“For years I’ve watched Mick’s journey unfold, at times full of hope inspired by his church, and at his lowest in despair at the human suffering he has witnessed … But what has never changed is his resilience to carry on, with the unwavering belief that there is more good than bad in the world, and it is the good that will triumph.”

Ed Thomas, UK Editor, BBC News.

Pre-order Walk in My Shoes and help support our work.

Thank You for Supporting the CAS Appeal

Thank you to everyone who donated to our CAS Appeal: Winter Coat and Shoe Appeal. 100% of donations to this special fund were used to buy brand new winter coats and shoes for children living in poverty.

We have now wound up the appeal for this year, and we are delighted to say that we were able to help more than 150 children locally in the most need.

We will be relaunching the CAS Appeal next winter, starting October 2025.

Our NHS Standard Treatment Room

As mentioned in the Radio 4 Sunday feature (see above), this is the treatment room that we had built to allow the NHS to run clinics in our church. Getting the facility to meet the required standards cost us in the region of £20,000.

The importance of having this treatment room on site, is that in combination with our drop-in support services, essential health services are being delivered to people who would otherwise struggle to access them.

We currently provide wound care, podiatry, liver scans, Hep C testing and general health checks. In 2025 we look forward to expanding this provision with new services for women’s health.