Hope Cirencester is a local charity serving the people of Cirencester through practical care, real friendship and lasting hope.
Our purpose is to live out our Christian faith through building community, strengthening wellbeing and opening accessible pathways for people to explore faith through meaningful, practical connection.
We support individuals and families facing isolation, hardship or a difficult season of life, and anyone who would like to explore faith in a safe, welcoming environment.
We do this through community activities, wellbeing programmes and partnerships with local churches and organisations.
Hope Cirencester began life as the "Church of the Open Door Cirencester" in 2002 and has been active in the town since then. In 2009 we changed the name to reflect what we aim to bring to the town: Hope.
As a registered charity (no. 1095438) we've developed and changed as the needs of those we support have evolved. Today we have over 100 supporters and volunteers, with a Trust Board drawn from the community and wider afield.
Working in PartnershipToday we work in partnership with several organisations. Our work is carried out with support from the Church of England, with a formal endorsement and provision of support form the Diocese of Gloucester in 2019 through a Bishop's Mission Order (BMO), a legal document created by a bishop in the Church of England to formally recognize, foster and help to develop a distinctive Christian community. This formal document also instituted our leader, Bernie Mann, as a Lay Pioneer Minister in the Church of England. Gloucester Diocese provides invaluable support, ensuring best practice in Safeguarding practice, oversight of the work and training support.
We also work closely with the Salvation Army in Cirencester, with a formal partnership agreement which enables us to work jointly and provides a town centre location for much of our work. The local Parish of Cirencester provides a second venue in the important Chesterton area, and we work closely with the Parish ministers and clergy to ensure strong links are maintained.
Volunteers come from across the community, but we especially want to thank the Rotary Club, who volunteer to help in literacy and other lifelong learning activities.