The Church is more than just a building: it's the people who make up the Church who are living stones. The Church has resources and infrastructure, both physical and spiritual, which can be deployed to tackle the issue of destitution.

Background

We're only too aware of the scale of the problem facing destitute asylum seekers in Greater Manchester. There are no hostel places available for people who do not qualify for housing benefit, so where will they stay? Each week the Boaz Trust receives on average 10 new referrals for accommodation from agencies like the Red Cross, CABs or Refugee Action.

Currently individuals and churches are doing what they can. A Catholic priest in one of the boroughs is housing 10 destitute single men, and there are a few others putting folks up in their homes or churches. The Boaz Trust is the largest provider of accommodation with 6 people living with hosts and 16 (soon increasing to 21) in Boaz supported housing.

Our Experience of Hosting

The original idea of hosting was to find people willing to take in guests for however long they were able to. Being realistic, this isn't without a few issues:

:: The host may live in an area like Didsbury, where the guest is isolated from their community and friends. They may have no money for bus fares.

:: Guests may find it problematic to live in someone else's home, especially if there are children who remind them of their own families back home.

:: Hosts tend to take on not only the role of room provider but also the issues and concerns facing the guest. They become involved in their situation, and in helping run the risk of burnout after a few months.

One positive experience has been shared hosting. It may not be ideal for the guest, who is tired of a nomadic existence, but it solves the problem of burnout and enables the host to have a life of their own. It also enables them to have family and friends stay over. Nevertheless it can still be quite isolating, and even if the hosts are part of a church, the rest of the church may have no idea that they have a guest and have no part to play in their welfare.

A Church-centred Solution

With this in mind, and believing that the Church is the only true solution to the problem, the Boaz Trust is proposing that churches rather than individuals take on the responsibility of looking after one or more destitute asylum seekers, thus sharing the burden and providing a more coherent and holistic approach to their needs.

The church would commit in principle to the following:

:: Accommodating the guest in homes or church premises

:: Befriending them and offering hospitality and orientation in the community

:: Providing basic essentials not available readily at the destitution project such as toiletries, a bus pass and some credit for their mobile phone or access to a landline

:: Listening to their story and seeing how their asylum claim might be assisted or revived

:: Offering prayer and spiritual support

The congregation would be asked if they were willing to provide a room for a fixed period of time, or on a respite basis. One month blocks would be good but there may be alternative models to fit the particular church. The number of asylum seekers would then be determined according to the offers of accommodation.

The Boaz Trust would offer training, support, information and advice for the hosts, with identified leaders in the church providing pastoral oversight.

>> Contact us to discuss to find out more about becoming involved as a church.

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