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Hull Community Church, Hull |
 Hull Community Church isn’t just a
church in the ordinary sense: it’s a faith-based organisation working
to improve lives in a deprived part of Hull.
Today, it operates from a purpose built centre, but that was not always the case. Anne Dannerolle is the centre manager, and she remembers the early days.
‘We were getting involved in typical community activities,’ she says. ‘Toddler groups, lunches for older people and summer clubs. There were also people in the congregation who wanted to help those who are particularly excluded, such as women in prostitution, and young people excluded from school.’
Projects were set up around these aims, and those projects became their own charities, housed under one roof: a small building bought from the Lutheran church years ago. Over time, this became too small for the community groups. That’s where the ACF came in.
On the site of the existing building, a purpose-built community centre was designed and built. The total cost was £2.2m, and when a shortfall of £220,000 emerged, Hull Community Church applied to the ACF for the last piece of the jigsaw.
‘We heard in June 2006 that we’d been successful with our bid,’ says Anne. ‘We received a £50,000 grant, and a loan of £170,000. The money helped us finish the building off and equip it, so we could open and groups could start using it.’
The benefits have been immediate. There’s an auditorium which doubles as a sports hall, a café, office suites, crèche, and IT rooms. Groups have been able to expand and improve their work, employing more staff and starting new programmes. There’s support for Congolese refugees, sports groups, and health charities.
External groups, such as the council and Sure Start, rent space at the centre and are generating about £30,000 a year, which will help repay the loan. That money also helps sustain groups’ activities, such as providing free IT training to the unemployed.
‘It’s hard to quantify, but this has made a huge impact,’ says Anne. ‘We were the only part of Hull without this kind of facility, and now there’s a huge buzz in the community.’
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