Serving hope
Thanks to support from people like you, there are now 610 Places of Welcome across the country, reaching an estimated 14,000 people every week!
Places of Welcome is a growing network of community spaces providing local people with warm and safe places where everyone can feel safe to connect, belong and contribute.
The people who take part in Places of Welcome are often isolated, elderly, disabled, vulnerable or in need of vital social connection.
The spaces allow people to access a regular setting where they are able to connect with others, but also feel valued.
In our recent participant survey, 96% of people agreed that coming to a Place of Welcome made them feel more connected with the local community.
Your support is enabling that to happen.
Can you donate today and help us serve hope to more communities?
What happens when you support us?
Understanding people’s needs
“We were inspired by CUF’s Growing Good course, and knew we wanted to offer a Place of Welcome. Come the winter, we heard about the warm hubs. Now on Thursdays we have our Place of Welcome, there’s a communion service in the morning and a toddler group from lunchtime onwards."
“We've got quite a lot of young parents and grandparents who bring toddlers who come earlier and have lunch. Now we’re open and people know we’re here, we're beginning to see people that we'd never seen in the church before. We’ve got quite a lot of single parents, some who are struggling with the cost of living, but now they’re coming in with their little ones for a healthy snack and space to play while parents sit and chat." Kath, volunteer at St. Paul's in Stalybridge.
Bringing churches and people together
"There's a green grocer who is right in town, there's a high school that wants to get involved in social action in a safe way and there’s our church. We’ve been brought together by this project that is feeding our community."
St Paul’s Church in Stalybridge has been welcoming new communities through its doors since it launched it Place of Welcome in November 2022. After deciding to launch a free soup lunch, the church was approached by a local school which offered to provide the soup, cooked by children in home economics lessons. Ingredients are provided by the parish’s local greengrocer.
"The school asked, 'Would it be helpful if we made the soup for you?' It was just one of those kind of moments and we thought, 'yes it really would!’"
Warm and welcome spaces
In our Places of Welcome survey, 100% of people said they had got to know new people.
“When people come for a cup of tea and a bit of cake and a chat, it does feel like we’re making space for a village in a big city.”
“One of our visitors has vascular dementia. He’s offered puzzles, memory games and different people to talk to and sit with. This lets his wife chat to her friends and relax a little for the 6 hours they spend in the cafe. They can have a hot meal and she can enjoy a game of bingo. The couple are well known and loved in our community, so it feels as though we are offering really important support to the whole community on this journey through dementia. We have at least three other couples going through a similar journey who attend the cafe regularly.” A Places of Welcome volunteer in Brighton.
Adapting for the future
“As a Place of Welcome, our attendees find a caring safe space where information can be shared in an accessible and accurate way. As we get to know people, we tailor our activities to suit each individual. This is vitally important where so much of life has changed, from booking GP appointments to local bus services.” A Places of Welcome volunteer in Brighton.
Our vision is to provide a future where every person in need has access to the things they need, from information and access to local services to essential food and warmth. Your support will help us achieve that, together.
