All Hallows Community Project
| Funding — please see the letter (Pentecost 2005) and Ways to Give document. |
All Hallows Church includes All Hallows Community Project (AHCP) as part of its ministry. All Hallows Community Project, an alliance of church, the local community and others, consists of a community café, T’ai Chi classes, spiritual healing and a Hip-Hop/Breakdance club for young people.
The café space is part of a National Lottery-funded extension to the church. Anne Jenkins (our former vicar) and Moira Austin had the original vision for the café and saw the extension through to its opening in October 1999. It is staffed by two job-sharing project co-ordinators (Ruth Hutchison and Sandra Scott), and activities are delivered with the help of a number of volunteers.
Since then we have been developing a vision for the projects which aims to contribute to meeting the needs of body, mind and spirit in a diverse community.
The project co-ordinators
Many people associated with All Hallows already knew Ruth through her previous work with the local Churches and Community Project and as a regular attender here at All Hallows. Sandra Scott will be known to people who have been involved in the Playgroup, the Food Co-op and other things down the years at St Margaret and All Hallows. Sandra lives in the local area, was one of the leaders of All Welcome Church that used to meet at Burley Lodge Centre, and has been involved in community activities in the area for a number of years; she has recently been teaching at Rosebank School.
What’s on
Click here for a brief list or weekly schedule of what’s on at All Hallows arranged by the Community Project, or read on for fuller information!
Community café
The community café offers cheap and nutritious food. It is open two days a week, serving breakfast and lunch from 9.00 am to 3.00 pm every Wednesday and Thursday — meat and vegetarian options are available. The café is run by local volunteers who plan the menu, cook the dishes and serve. We need volunteers to help run the café and to take a lead on other activities held within the project. There are opportunities for volunteers to acquire new skills and training, and to utilise skills that they already have. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact the project co-ordinator on 0113 242 8455.
The café is in many ways the heart of AHCP, and is seen by those running the project as an opportunity to welcome in and engage with local Hyde Park residents. The café offers ‘healthy eating’ as a grounding for other ‘healthy living’ activities provided by AHCP, described below.
The ethnic mix and age of customers is extremely diverse, and bears out the fact that everyone is made to feel welcome at the café. People regularly comment not just on the cheapness and good value of the food, but also on its good quality, confirming that the café is succeeding in producing healthy food. The café is clean and light, and there is comfortable space for five tables each seating four people. The tables are attractively presented, with bright tablecloths and (on some days) fresh-cut flowers.
The café is recognised as a meeting point for local people. Unlike an advice centre, people feel that they can come to the café without needing to have a reason other than to get something to eat or drink and to see who else is there. ‘There’s nothing like it locally’, one café user said, and ‘This is the best thing that’s happened locally for years.’
The café is reached though the main door of the All Hallows buildings, but it can be entered without any need to go into the church worship space. This physical arrangement is reinforced by the complete — and much appreciated — lack of preaching or religious influence served with the meals. One user said, ‘I came for three weeks just waiting for someone to talk to me about God so that I could walk out — but no-one did, and I’m still coming!’
And despite — or because of — the absence of references to God, people say that they feel at home. Comments have included: ‘I come here because I know I will be treated with respect, as an equal’; and ‘I feel uplifted when I’ve been here’. Interestingly, some people don’t see a distinction between the work of the church and the café itself. When they are asked about what the café provides for local people, they may well talk about work done by the church and its vicar (such as funerals and informal listening/counselling). All Hallows Church sees no distinction between activities taking place in church premises on Sunday and on any other day of the week, and this vision seems to be borne out by the reactions of those who are using the premises.
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T’ai Chi
Sessions run regularly on a Monday night from 7.00 to 9.00 pm. The T’ai Chi style that is taught is from the Lee Family tradition.
There is a scale of charges — £1.50 per session for those not in work, and £3 for those in work.
Salsa Classes
The classes are held weekly on Tuesdays from 6.30 to 8.00 pm*, from 16 September to 18 November 2003. The cost is £1 per session. And then on Tuesday 25 November we’ll have a night out to a Salsa club in town, joining in the lesson and then showing off a few moves of our own! (More details nearer the time!) The classes will start up again after Christmas for 20 weeks.
*NB The class on Tuesday 23 September is slightly earlier and shorter: 6—7 pm.
Spiritual Healing
Healing is provided on Thursday afternoons by members of the National Federation of Spiritual Healing. Available to anyone who wants it, without charge, it is a subtle but significant addition to both the atmosphere and outreach provided by AHCP. A handout explains that the healing is non-denominational, and even non-godly; the healers act as a channel for creative power, however the receiver may define that power.
Breakers Unify
This Hip-Hop/Breakdance club runs on Friday evenings from 5.00 to 7.00 pm. Breakers Unify is a network of clubs operating mainly in the north-east of England, with several other clubs in Leeds. There is a £5 membership charge, and then sessions are free.
Breakdance has its origins in American gangs substituting competitive dance for violent conflict. Breakers Unify stresses the ‘peace’ element in Breakdance, and aims to include this in any performances that they offer. People attending the sessions (including those at All Hallows) must commit to the ethos of equality, building positive relationships, and finding and building self-respect and respect for others. There is a clear link to the ‘healthy living’ aspect of AHCP — you have to be fit to be a breakdancer!
Streetdance
The Streetdance for girls group, with a limited number of members at any one time, runs on Friday evenings from 5.00 to 6.30 pm.
Yoga
Exercise, relax and have fun at a new yoga class, starting on Friday 28 November 2003 from 6.45 pm to 8.15 pm. Cost £1 per session. Beginners welcome. There will also be a free crèche for children under 13. Please call in or phone Sandra or Ruth on 0113 242 8455 to book a free place.
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Some of the text on this page has been adapted from ‘Promoting the Benefit’, an evaluation report on AHCP by John Gray of Framework. |