Signs of hope: stories of churches working together in their local communities

More stories:

The Big Idea, Wokingham

Ebenezer Church, Horfield Bristol

The Strongtower project, Wigan

Together for Peace: Leeds

Flowers Estate, Southampton

The County Towns Initiative: countrywide

West Cross Community Church

West Cross Community Church started life in 1999, and contains 75% under 25s. We now work together with a traditional baptist Church and and Anglican Church and run 'OASIS' which doubles as our Church office and a coffee shop, debt advice centre, youth drop in, counselling rooms, dance studio, mentoring base and resource centre.

Its not a huge initiative but it is making an impact and initial neighbour hostility and turned to warmth and support.

- John Tancock

Engage: Brighton

In the mid 1990’s a group of church leaders started meeting together to talk about transforming their city. Denominationally, they represented a very broad spread: from Anglo-Catholics to house church leaders, liberals, evangelicals and charismatics. They had different agendas, but each knew of many churches of committed Christians who needed support and advice to make an impact in their neighbourhoods. So they set up Engage to provide that service, with support from the CUF, SEEDA and the Shaftesbury Society.

When the group started, cooperation was not easy as they had to get to know each other beyond their denominational labels. They had to lay aside their agendas to focus on tackling issues of poverty across the city. At first, decision-making was slow, but as relationships and trust grew, progress was made more easily. Engage now employ a member of staff to work alongside all the congregations in the city. His first year was spent surveying 142 of the city’s churches, finding out what each one was doing in their community. Based on the survey’s findings, he now works with churches, helping them to develop new areas of work.

The COWS: South London

In Streatham, south London, a number of churches work together within their neighbourhood. Regular meeting between leaders led to strong relationships and the development of many ideas for joint activities. After a few years, one leader suggested to the others: “perhaps it is time we stopped courting and got married.” This suggestion led to four churches signing a public agreement, along with a service of dedication, which committed them to “do nothing singly that could be better done together.” As they were the churches of West Streatham, it has become known as the COWS Covenant. It has not been a completely smooth ride, but ten years on the churches have grown closely together. They arrange joint Christmas services and coordinate their input into the annual local festival.

Their efforts to work collaboratively have seen real fruit in youth and schools work, with strong relationships formed with local schools and a new youth centre developed as a joint venture. David Whitlock, the Baptist minister involved in the partnership says: “unity has not meant uniformity but, through focussing on what unites rather than what divides us, we have been far more effective in witnessing to God’s kingdom than we could ever have been working in isolation.”

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