Guildford Town Centre Chaplaincy wins £1,000 Movement for Good Award

Published on: 25 Jun, 2019
Updated on: 27 Jun, 2019

Guildford Town Centre Chaplaincy, well known for its Street Angel and Community Angel projects, has won a £1,000 Movement for Good award thanks to nominations from the public.

Street Angels on duty during end of exam celebrations this week.

The Guildford-based charity was nominated as part of insurer Ecclesiastical’s Movement for Good awards, which is giving £1 million to charities this summer.

The Guildford Chaplaincy has been established for over 10 years and is supported by churches, businesses and individuals from the Guildford area.

Thanks to the energy of 130 volunteers, it runs the award-winning Street Angel project which has helped 50,000 people in its first decade of operation, providing a calming presence on the town’s streets, between 10.30pm and 4am, every Friday and Saturday night.

Its newer project, Community Angels, tackles the growing problem of loneliness through befriending, empowerment and reconnection for the most isolated across the town during the day.

Volunteer chaplains provide an independent listening ear within the workplaces of the town centre.

Town chaplain the Revd Noelle Coe, said “We are so grateful for this donation, it will enable us to keep caring for the vulnerable in our town.

“We work in close collaboration with a wide range of voluntary organisations and statutory bodies, often bridging a gap in service provision.

“It costs over £80,000 a year to maintain our services and we are always on the look out for people who might be able to help – particularly through joining our fabulous team of volunteers or supporting our finances.”