Ministry & Mission - Outward Giving

St Matthew's will be supporting the following charities throughout 2024. Other charities will be supported as appropriate. Please take a look at our fundraising page to see a list of planned events for 2024.

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Project 16:15

Until October 2017 Northampton had no daily street level service provision for its rough sleepers. There were weekend soup kitchens, evening and afternoon drop-ins at local churches and at the Hope Centre. But then one man had the vision to reach out to the homeless in our community where they were, and Project 16:15 was born. Instead of setting up in a particular location and inviting the homeless to come along, his mission was to go to the homeless people to show that each person has worth, worthy enough for someone to meet them where they are, serve them a cooked breakfast every single morning, and offer a sense of security, an ear to listen to them, a shoulder to cry on and give them a sense of purpose. Project 16:15 is an organisation structured for the purpose of bringing value and worth to all within our community who, regardless of social status, gender, sexuality, religion, situation or circumstance have found themselves trapped in a cycle of poverty, depression, addiction, anxiety, and shame. And through situations, regardless of choice, have lost sight of their own self-respect and self-worth.

Since its inception there have been changes in the way the local authorities deal with homelessness, a growth of understanding and support for the Hope Centre, and a change in attitude from public and media. Rough sleepers are now believing in their own worth, being enabled to engage with other services and to get off the streets. And for those who for so long had accepted a life without purpose, being enabled to see purpose again.

There is a moment when another parent's son or daughter, another child's mother or father fades away from sight, lost to isolation and loneliness, fear and depression, and ending up as yet another life on the streets, where prostitution, abuse and drug dependency can become the norm. Project 16:15 demonstrates, through kindness, genuine compassion and practical examples lived out, that there is hope, that there is purpose, for everyone. More details about their work can be found by visiting the Project 16:15 website.

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WaterAid

Some of the world's poorest and most marginalised people do not have clean water to drink, decent toilets or hygiene. Without these basics, overcoming poverty is just a dream.

Children have to walk long distances to collect and drink dirty water. WaterAid has teams in 28 countries across the world, working with their partners to transform millions of lives every year by improving access to clean water, toilets and hygiene. Since 1981, over 27 million people have been provided with clean water. WaterAid has become one of the most respected organisations dealing solely with water, sanitation and hygiene issues. But there is still much to be done.

WaterAid convinces governments to change laws, it links policy makers with people on the ground, it pools knowledge and resources and rallies support from people and organisations around the world, making lasting change happen on a massive scale. More details about their work can be found by visiting the WaterAid website.

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Christian Aid

Christian Aid works worldwide to eradicate the causes of poverty, striving to achieve equality, dignity and freedom for all, regardless of faith or nationality. Its work overseas is based on co-operation and partnership with local churches, ecumenical bodies, NGOs and movements who have common values and competence in poverty eradication. Christian Aid Week dates from 1957, and over the years its profile has brought about real and practical change. More information on their work can be obtained by visiting the Christian Aid website. For the 2012 Christian Aid Week in May, St Matthew's held various events, including a coffee morning, a breakfast, street collections and distributed a quiz to raise money for the charity.

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Northampton Hope Centre

From its 1974 roots as the Northampton Soup Kitchen this Christian charity works directly with the homeless and underprivileged community in Northampton and the surrounding area, its principal aim being to help people progress and hopefully re-integrate into mainstream society. Its client base now totals around 1500 people aged 18 to 80. These people need help for many reasons - some have alcohol and drug problems, others have suffered family breakdowns and have nowhere to turn, some are elderly or have mental health issues and are unable to cope, some sleep on the streets and most have been homeless at some time in their lives. But in also helping them to 'move on' with their lives through a programme of education, training and development, this builds their self-esteem and enables them to take on responsibility, hopefully leading to employment and/or community volunteering. The Hope Centre tries to give everybody a 'hand-up' as well as a 'hand-out'. A small team of 10 people, 6 full- and 4 part-time, along with 70 or so dedicated volunteers, support up to 100 homeless/underprivileged clients every day. More information on their work can be obtained by visiting the Northampton Hope Centre website.

St Matthew's worshippers bring donations of toiletries and non-perishable foods to church on the first Sunday of every month, which are then delivered by a rota of volunteer drivers; in December we donate money instead, towards providing a Christmas meal for the Hope Centre clients.

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Link to Hope

In response to the devastating television pictures in 1991 showing appalling conditions in the orphanages in Romania, a group of volunteers from Worthing hired a truck, loaded it with aid and drove to Romania. Nicolae Ceauşescu's brutal regime had left the country impoverished and reeling from the effects of the totalitarian police state. The Christian organization Link Romania was established to help the poorest and most marginalized of Romania's people, rebuilding lives and communities. After 21 years as Link Romania the charity has decided to change its name due to the highly increased project and support work it does in other European countries such as Moldova, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Albania, and of course Romania still. More information on its work can be obtained by visiting the Link to Hope website.

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Northamptonshire Historic Churches Trust

The Northamptonshire Historic Churches Trust was founded in 1955 with the object of raising funds to make grants to churches in Northamptonshire of all denominations for their ''preservation, repair and maintenance, improvement, upkeep, beautification and reconstruction".

The Trust's funds are raised by donations, subscriptions from friends, and the proceeds of the sponsored Ride+Stride, which has been an annual event across most of the country since it began in Suffolk in 1981. It takes place on the second Saturday in September every year. Sponsored individuals and groups ride their bikes or walk between churches to raise money, visiting some historic gems and being sustained by biscuits and refreshments along the way. Funds raised are divided equally between the Trust and the riders/walkers' own choice of church. In 2016 the Trust was able to make grants of £11,000 and pledges to make grants of £44,500 - £55,500 in total. Without the monies raised through the annual Ride+Stride, this would not be possible.

St Matthew's takes part every year in the Ride+Stride event, both by being open to visiting 'Riders+Striders' and also by organizing a band of walkers (and the odd cyclist) to raise funds. We choose our own route, fitting in as many churches on the list of those open as we can reasonably do.

St Matthew's has benefitted in recent years with grants from NHCT, including one of £10,000 in 2012 - the largest grant ever awarded - for major repair works to our stonework. You can read about the work undertaken on our Caring for our Heritage page.

Further details of the Trust's work can be found by visiting the NHCT website.

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