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The path to God’s house can be both a physical, as well as a spiritual, challenge. Recently, the SVP team, in combination with the Young Persons SVP and some neighbours, made an attempt at easing the physical journey of our parishioners.

On a humid, but dry, Sunday afternoon a team of 12 volunteers met to clear up the public footpath that leads down the side of the church grounds, from The Croft to Victoria Road. The footpath can be an eyesore at times and can make some parishioners feel vulnerable. A clean-up was proposed by the Young Persons SVP and a wonderful turnout was had!

We recently mentioned the significant increase in visitor numbers to the Foodbank and that the team is considering a re-introduction of a volunteers rota to help us through the coming autumn and winter.

Since Lockdown commenced, the Foodbank has been operated by a ‘volunteers bubble’ - consisting of SVP and Young Persons SVP members and also a fantastic ’temporary’ team of home delivery volunteers.

Thank you to those who have kindly stepped forward to be part of the new rota and it is still not too late to get in touch if you would like to be included! The Foodbank leaders meet next Saturday to discuss the idea of re-introducing a rota, potentially to start on Sept. 5, and we will be in touch with all those who expressed an interest once a safe strategy is agreed.

The presence of the Holy Spirit in the parish is so tangible. Your incredible response to the Easter appeal for help, which raised over £3,500, has given us a super-solid foundation from which we are able to continue to help the needy who come to us.

Before the pandemic, our typical monthly visitor numbers to the Foodbank were 120+. In May, though, our monthly figure was a sobering 391. Each and every one was helped, because you helped us. Please accept our heartfelt thanks for your donations of funds, supplies and, above all, prayers.

Our SVP Monthly Meetings continue online to the usual schedule and that means July’s meeting occurs on Zoom on Monday evening at 8pm. Even though our activities are constrained at present we always seem to have a lot to say!! That surely is a great sign of the strength of the Power of the Spirit within our blessed parish.

Our most active work streams at present include the food bank, bereavement care, phone-buddying and mentoring of the Young Persons SVP. If there are needs that we should be addressing, but that we have not got on our radar, then please do not hesitate to get in touch - it is sometimes difficult to see the bigger picture when you are too close to the detail so, rest assured, we will receive all feedback in a positive light!!

Like other aspects of our society, the SVP Team now needs to think of how we adjust ourselves to the new ’normal’. Our most active workstream at the moment is the Foodbank, and we have kept this open during the pandemic with an intentionally-small team acting as a Foodbank bubble. This strategy works well for short term issues but it removes team qualities such as resilience and sustainability, that are necessary for longer-term success.