Caritas Westminster, underpinned by Catholic Social Teaching, seeks to bring about a society where “everyone lives a life of dignity and worth”.
- Meet basic human need
- Develop human potential
- Support engagement, social inclusion and belonging
- Promote social justice and fairness
They do this by promoting parish based social action in a variety of ways.
- Support to new and existing based social action projects through the Caritas hubs
- Promoting and sharing good practice of social action projects running in each parish throughout the Diocese of Westminster – Social Action Map
- Develop and provide resources for parish priests and volunteers available here
Looking for Accommodation
Homeless projects are always looking for suitable move-on accommodation. If you are aware of any HMO (House of Multiple Occupation) property anywhere in the Diocese, please let Caritas know.
In particular, Lazarus, one of our network projects is looking for an 8+ bed accommodation in the Diocese outside of Central London. They would be interested to work with local homeless partners on a new move-on solution.
Ending Homelessness
The full recording of the second Diocese of Westminster Homeless Network Event is here. It is titled ‘Living and responding to those with lived experience of Homelessness’. Hear from Kerri Douglas, an author and blogger and survivor of homelessness and Jon Kuhrt who is the Specialist Rough Sleeping Advisor to MHCLG. Watch and share to inspire others how to respond to those experiencing homelessness in your parish. The link to Kerri Douglas’ book Gutter to Glory is here If you want to order in bulk, please let me know.
Ongoing Caritas Support
Caritas Development Workers can help Parish Priests, Parish Office Staff, SVP Groups, Parish Social Action Groups, Caritas Representatives in the following ways and more:-
- Apply for Caritas Crisis or Funeral Grants on behalf of someone who is struggling.
- Issue Supermarket Vouchers, or help to source food via the Caritas Food Collective.
- Link to other social action groups/ local charities known to us for referrals, advice or best practice sharing. Networking of Food, Homeless & Migrant and Refugee Projects.
- Discern how to respond to the needs of the community through Catholic Social Teaching (Love in Action programme and The Why)
- The set-up or development of any social outreach, including our new Road to Resilience set of resources – helping people after the pandemic with listening exercises, community organising or a social justice response.
To access this support, please contact your local Caritas Development Worker directly or email caritaswestminster@rcdow.org.uk
Reflection, prayer and discernment
‘The Why’ is a simple resource for parishes to use to reflect on social outreach activities undertaken during the pandemic, and to use Catholic Social Teaching to discern the next steps. Download here.