Farm Street Charities
Our parish Charities Fund was established at Farm Street to help with major projects. Currently we are helping to alleviate the plight of the homeless through supporting volunteer-run night shelters in London. On an international level, we are committed to assisting the work of the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) and providing funds for the upkeep of Catholic schools and religious education in Pakistan. We also support The Amelie and Daniel Lindsay Foundation which works for the rehabilitation of victims of the Easter Sunday 2019 bombings in Sri Lanka.
We keep close links with these and other projects to ensure accountability and to help parishioners take a personal interest. Photographs of works are regularly displayed in the church. We also assist parishes in London and elsewhere who have specific needs.
Saint Vincent de Paul Society
This international voluntary organisation is dedicated to tackling poverty and distress by providing direct assistance to anyone in need. The Farm Street conference the SVP has been active for over twenty years and has many volunteers. They meet at about 8pm every Monday at 114 Mount Street to deliver food and clothing to those living rough. They also undertake home visits as well as supporting SVP conferences abroad.
Central London Catholic Churches (CLCC)
Formed at the beginning of the first UK Lockdown in March 2020, CLCC is a group of volunteers from a variety of London churches responding to a need to serve and provide for the homeless. Originally operating as a hub at Trafalgar Square, CLCC now operates in the Arrupe Hall at 114 Mount Street, providing a cooked lunch for the homeless on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
AID TO THE CHURCH IN NEED
Aid to the Church in Need is a Pontifical Foundation of the Catholic Church, supporting the Catholic faithful and other Christians where they are persecuted, oppressed or in pastoral need.
Farm Street is pleased to support the work of ACN through prayer, raising awareness and fundraising. This involves the #Red Wednesday campaign in November, joining in the annual pilgrimage in the Holy Land or elsewhere, and hosting the annual Carol Service. The current parish priest Fr Dominic is the charity’s ecclesiastical assistant.
More information on the charity and how to volunteer visit:
Jesuit Missions (JM)
We have a very close relationship with Jesuit Missions. Their work supports members of the Society of Jesus in Britain, Guyana, South Africa, Zimbabwe, and many other countries where Jesuits minister. Jesuit Missions helps the British Province make real its call to proclaim a Faith that does Justice in supporting those Jesuits involved in work overseas.
Jesuit Refugee Service
JRS is an international Catholic organisation with a mission to accompany, serve and defend the rights of refugees and forcibly displaced people. In Britain, JRS works on behalf of all asylum seekers, from their first arrival until they are satisfactorily settled.
As a Jesuit organisation and leading refugee charity Farm Street supports the work of JRS through prayer, awareness raising and appeals. Some parishioners volunteer at the Day Centre in Wapping in east London and welcome refugees into their homes as part of the JRS At Home scheme. Farm Street also hosts the annual JRS Carol Service and occasional awareness raising events throughout the year.
Caritas & Justice & Peace
Caritas is the social action department of the Diocese of Westminster who, in conjunction with the Justice and Peace Commission of the Diocese, aims to put Catholic Social Teaching into practice in the Diocese as a whole and further afield as part of the social mission of the Church.
Farm Street is pleased to support the varied work of Caritas and Justice and Peace in the Diocese through prayer, raising awareness and funds. At the current time the issue of food poverty and human trafficking in central London are specific priorities, as well as ecological concerns spearheaded by the work of the new London Jesuit Centre. The current parish priest Fr Dominic is chair of the diocesan Justice and Peace Commission.
For more information visit www.caritaswestminster.org.uk and https://rcdow.org.uk/diocese/justice-and-peace/ or contact the Farm Street Parish Representative, Lisa Fraser, at lfrasereuk@gmail.com.
