The Baptist Union of Great Britain has allotted thousands of pounds worth of grants to Baptist churches across the country to enable them to carry out vital poverty alleviation projects.

The £19,500 grant from the BUGB will be shared between seven churches across the country which will each receive between £2,000 and £3,000 from the Against the Stream fund.

According to the Rev. Terry Jones, mission adviser to BUGB, the fund awards money to projects which “alleviate poverty and its effects and enable churches to engage in effective holistic mission”.

Sudbury Baptist Church in Harrow received a grant of £2,500 which will enable it to set up a computer club for young people in the community at Easter.

The Rev. Graham Nind, minister of Sudbury, said it was important that the church did something to help the community in which it was situated.

“We have a responsibility to do something,” he said. “There’s absolutely nothing for young people to do, and there is a lot of drug dealing, mugging and violence directed at young people.

“It’s easy to look at all the things going on and whinge, or you can try and make a small dent in it,” said Rev. Nind. “It’s about taking the idea of stewardship seriously.”

Shoreditch Tabernacle in East London will use its £3,000 grant to refurbish one of the church halls which will then be used to run a pensioner’s day care centre and a breakfast club for homeless people.

The Revd Sarah Parry, minister of the church, said there was an ‘enormous need’ in the community for such projects.

‘We’re right on the edge of Tower Hamlets and on the boundaries of Hackney, two of the most needy boroughs in London.’

Other churches to receive grants were Barnwell, Aldershot, Lawrence Weston (Bristol), and Central (Leicester) Baptist Churches.

[Source: Baptist Times]