CRCW - Ann Honey

Billingham is a town dating back to Anglo-Saxon times within the borough of Stockton-on-Tees. The town developed substantially in the 1930’s as workers were attracted to the local shipbuilding industries and to ICI. The decline of these industries in the late 20th century, has left pockets of social deprivation including high levels of long-term unemployment, particularly in the areas directly around the Church.

St. Columba’s URC is part of the Hartlepool and Teesside Group, which consists of four URC churches in a 15-mile radius of each other (Hartlepool, Billingham, Stockton and Thornaby). Although the Church is within a four -church pastorate the CRCW project will only include St. Columba's URC.

Project Aims: By demonstrating Christian love and values, we seek to transform the lives of the most vulnerable in the local community. Two points of focus identified by the church are:

* to improve outcomes for the young people in the local area.
* in association with other agencies, to develop initiatives to engage with the socially isolated, including young parents, single parent families and elderly residents.

Church Related Community Worker; Ann Honey was called to this new CRCW project at the end of 2018 and inducted to St. Columba’s in February 2019. The first year of the project built relationships with many local organisations, and although the Covid Pandemic put the brakes on some of the activities in church, Ann has worked to keep these going – working at the local foodbank, with “Stockton Hope”  and supporting the work of the youth organisation “Corner House”.

Ann divides her time between the project (80%) and Northern Synod (for the remaining 20%). It’s early days but the initial aims are:

St Columba’s, Billingham - Strategic objectives aim to identify community needs and opportunities; to develop skills and confidence, enabling the church to respond practically and to reflect theologically on the issues identified; build up relationships within the locality of the church; to address social injustice and improve outcomes for vulnerable people in the community.

Northern Synod - To engage with Northern Synod’s partnership of Faith in our Communities (FIC) and support the churches of the Synod to develop their engagement in community work, as part of God’s mission.

You can read a Ann's most recent CRCW reflection here.