Partner with your local school to support families in need this summer
In partnership with:
There are children and families near you facing a summer of unprecedented need - for basic support including everyday essentials such as food.
Right now, schools in your neighbourhood are looking at how to stay in touch and provide for their families over the summer. Your church can be an invaluable part of that solution.
With the end of the school year fast approaching,
we need to act now.
Here are some good places to start:
Get in touch with a school in your area and discuss their needs. Our experience is that, while stretched, schools are very open to this kind of help, particularly when backed by national programmes. Offer to help with food, deliveries, activities and other support if you can.
Find support from national networks, who are on hand to help you get set up quickly, and have thought through the issues for you. Here are some suggested partners.
Partner with other churches in the same area, who may have already started to respond.
Let us know your situation via the snap poll below so we can look at further support related to school / church partnerships
We are here to help you do that quickly and efficiently.
Whatever size church you are, and whatever capacity you have, you can make a difference.
National Support:
Transforming Lives for Good - tlg.org.uk
Transforming Lives for Good (TLG) have over 20 years of experience equipping local churches to meet the needs of struggling children and their families across the UK. They know how to enable your church to work well alongside a local school. They have made some introductory guidance freely available to help get started.
But more than that, through their Box of Hope emergency response, they’ve already equipped over 100 churches to meet the needs of their local community. And they want to help you too! They will give your church everything you need to get up and running quickly, including £200 start-up funding and a comprehensive package of support including resources and guidelines. And when we say quickly, we mean it! You could be up and running within a week. To get started, visit tlg.org.uk/box-of-hope
Love Your Neighbour - loveyourneighbour.uk
Love Your Neighbour (LYN) is a nationally scaled, city-centred and locally tailored response of churches and other civil society partners to the social challenges caused by COVID-19. It exists to transform the on-the-ground availability of food, friendship, advice and training to vulnerable and isolated people such as the shielding, unemployed, indebted, homeless and other groups who are falling between the cracks in existing provision.
There are city hubs and local partners you can link up with and can work with you to support your local school.
The Salvation Army - salvationarmy.org.uk
The Salvation Army is putting faith into action in response to the Covid crisis in lots of ways, including through local churches. The Salvation Army is encouraging local churches to work with schools to meet needs this summer, and to work together in partnerships locally. You can find out more about what the Salvation Army is doing nationally and find a local Salvation Army church or foodbank in your area who may be able to work with you.
The Message Trust - message.org.uk
The Message Trust and YourNeighbour.org are getting in touch with churches in areas with the most need - so that our national resources are put to best use. Along with all the partners mentioned above, we are constantly looking to improve the support we give to churches; listening, responding, communicating so we can make the most out of our collective experience where circumstances are rapidly changing.
Audacious - audaciousfoundation.com
Audacious Foundation works alongside the community to educate, encourage and empower people to overcome life's challenges and live a balanced, healthy life. This summer we are working in partnership with YourNeighbour.org; encouraging churches and community groups to engage with their local primary schools as together we address lockdown hunger in the UK.
Local networks
In addition to the city hubs mentioned above, there are hundreds of local networks across the UK. It’s worth reaching out and making some connections; you don’t need to join with others, but often doing so will give access to resources and experience, as well as building new relationships. We’d encourage you to look at the websites or speak to other churches in your area, any food bank or similar local community activity, or check in with your local authority.
To help us plan and communicate, please fill out our short snap poll below: