Community, Café, Solutions

Strategically placed, in the heart of the local community, Stainbeck Church is in an ideal location to serve the local community. Over the years, since it opened in 1931, it has done this in many different ways according to circumstance and need.


During the pandemic, one of our main outreaches into the community is through our Solutions which operates from our Community Café
. Here members of the community find information and support on benefits, family issues, mental health concerns, finding work, and much more in a friendly, non-judgemental atmosphere, and also can obtain information on for the local Food Pantry run by InterAct at the Meanwood Community Centre.

Free wifi, device charging, use of laptops.

Councillors hold a surgery on the first Thursday of the month.

 

The Café in open on Thursdays,  11:00 am to 1:00 pm for Coffee, Cake, Toasted Teacakes, etc and Chat. All are welcome; pay what you can afford

Stainbeck’s outreach continues through our Community Café and through our  Lunch Club . w Much of the practical work is now co-ordinated by InterAct .  For pastoral or other concerns, please contact the Minister or Church Secretaries via the Contact Us page.


At the young end of the age-range, we support THRIVE   and  run Messy Church  in conjunction with other local churches.


The Stainbeck Players  had been part of Stainbeck Church since 1954, providing an annual pantomime and other productions, which also provided much outreach into the community. Regretfully it had to disband in 2016.


The world has changed since the early days and with it our own lives, needs, hopes and expectations. Technological advances have been unprecedented and we are faced with many new challenges. No longer are churches automatically at the centre of their community. It is, we are fond of saying, ‘a different world’ now.

In all this change, Stainbeck remains a Church ‘in the community’ and ‘for the community’.

We have never been a wealthy church but we do have valuable resources to share – an open and friendly welcome, a constant presence and a listening ear, and an accessible, safe and comfortable space.


· The Church suis part if THRIVE . It is a member of Leeds Citizens , in particular supporting Team Beckhills.
· The Church works in partnership with other agencies. 
· The Church has good links with the local Primary and High Schools
· The Church offers hospitality to other agencies for different meetings, forums, events and surgeries.
· The Church has also offered hospitality to Community Groups with no charge if finance is difficult.
· The Church also rents space  to groups set up to serve the community but run as businesses. eg a Nursery, Weight Watchers, a Community Support Group, and Karate.
All this means that the building has been well-used and well-known to local residents even if less so during periods during the pandemic.
The Minister attends the local Interagency Meeting, and the Church has a place on the NEtWORKS Cluster Management Group and other local Forums. This ensures that the churches have a distinctive voice which is heard and respected and can play a full and effective part in the life of the community – sometimes in a support role, or as a catalyst for change, or to facilitate the work of other agencies, or even to encourage new initiatives or developments.

Stainbeck has a presence on Facebook.

Stainbeck contributed a short film in in 2011 on activities in Leeds.

“In One City (2011)” is a compilation of short films about a few activities in the City of Leeds, produced in a collaboration between Together for Peace and Lippy People. Some of the work at Stainbeck is shown in the film entitled ANGELA.  Click here .  (Switch OFF AUTOPLAY on viewing device)

Most importantly, the role of the churches is not static but constantly evolving and changing, offering many opportunities for God’s love and grace to be shared in both word and deed.


Community Songs of Praise, at which representatives of various agencies working in the community spoke of their work and chose hymns to sing and followed by refreshments and conversation, were held before the pandemic. We hope to resume.


Top of page