Projects
Supporting Christian Charities through healing and the arts.
CHANGING TUNES
The Anchor Foundation has supported Changing Tunes since 2010, donating generously to our music work with prisoners and ex-prisoners. The Foundation’s generous grants over the years have funded our core charity costs, musician salaries and our post-release programme. This has enabled us to ensure that 1000’s of prisoners can gain the personal and practical skills to live a life of meaning and purpose after prison. With the Foundation’s funding, we have been able to achieve an average reoffending rate of 15% over the past decade, which is much lower than the current national rate of 46%.
4Front Theatre
‘4Front Theatre exists to create both entertaining and thought-provoking theatre putting the Christian faith at the ‘4Front’. ‘Fisherman’s Tail’ is our hearty, all age, actor-musician musical about the 4 fishermen disciples whose everyday lives are blown out of the water when they get caught up in the whirlwind of Jesus’ life and miracles. The Anchor Foundation enabled us to take this production to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival; allowing us to play our part in shining Jesus’ light into the world’s largest arts festival, where a Christian message and values are very much marginalised.’
Princes Street Easter Play
We aim to fulfil our motto: “Christ in the heart of the city at Easter”. Most years since 2005 the Trust has presented an Easter play in Princes Street Gardens, the famous iconic setting in Edinburgh city centre. Several productions have been unique. Thanks to the significant grants from the Foundation we presented a modern version of the story of Jesus “The Edinburgh Passion” in 2014, the year of Scotland’s referendum. In 2018 the director and cast created an inventive and much praised production, some peripheral characters like Barabbas and Simon the Zealot given a voice.
Partners Relief and Development
The ongoing conflict in Kachin State, Myanmar has resulted in hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people. Many are cut off from reliable food sources and suffer, physically, mentally, and emotionally in the ever-changing unstable environment. To help people deal with the realities of war, the Community Support Network programme trains local volunteers to help meet community needs, coordinates children activities to improve social cohesion and education, as well as provides opportunities for counselling. The generous donation from The Anchor Foundation has helped make this essential support system available to more people across the region.
THE SCARGILL MOVEMENT
Scargill Movement is a Community house in North Yorkshire that runs a series of retreats and conferences. At the heart is the hospitality of God: the welcome that he gives to everyone. As people relax we find that God comes into the space that is created. The Anchor Foundation have helped us with a grant for the bursary fund: this enables a variety of groups that cannot afford it to come to Scargill and experience the welcome of God and enjoy the Yorkshire Dales. Groups include people with learning difficulties, asylum seekers, churches ministering to inner city areas and homeless people.
FOUNTAINS OF LIFE MINISTRIES INTERNATIONAL
We are a charity working amongst the tribal people of South India. We began by running tailoring centres and literacy schools in the villages and we have now built and run a home for abandoned children, providing a loving, nurturing environment for these children, some of whom have disabilities and developmental delay. We aim to look after them to a high standard – helping each one to feel an individual, a cherished part of a loving family and supporting them to reach their potential. It is so rewarding to see them grow, change and thrive, and this is all thanks to help that The Anchor Foundation and others have provided. We continue to run vocational training projects and other aid work amongst the villages, positively impacting communities for good.
Hope Trust Cardiff Project
The TAVS Centre comes under HOPE Trust Cardiff CIO, which is the social action charity for Glenwood Church. TAVS is a centre that aims to engage and support people in Cardiff who face multiple exclusion. We offer a holistic therapeutic approach providing practical support alongside the promotion of well-being. Creativity is central to what we do and with each service offered we aim to build confidence, self-esteem and self-worth, treating each person with dignity and respect. Some of the activities offered at TAVS include, the TAVS Bakery, TAVS Choir and our Creative Space. The Anchor Foundation has significantly contributed to the salaries of our part time staff.
Islington Centre for Refugees and Migrants
THE SHARAKAT PROJECT
The Sharakat Project is a community project based at St Paul’s Church, Manningham, Bradford. It has grown from the church’s vision to serve the local community in a way that fosters well being, includes the marginalised and encourages cross cultural and cross-faith relationships. It seeks to be a practical witness to the love of God in the community. The Anchor Foundation grant has enabled us to establish our Scones and Samosas cooking group and Knit together craft group which provide safe spaces for women of different faiths and cultures to meet and build friendships, reducing isolation and improving community cohesion.
THE SAMARITANS PURSE
Raising Families implemented by Samaritans Purse, acts as a catalyst for enabling thousands of poor families to break free from poverty. It does this by equipping local churches to enable poor families in their communities to make the most of local resources, skills and opportunities.
Now in its second year in Rwanda, 515 pastors have been trained and their churches have been envisioned. 10,300 families have been impacted with 2,562 individuals accepting Jesus into their lives. 9,785 families’ children are safe from abuse, neglect and exploitation, 8,755 families have access to health services and 4,223 families are saving regularly to lift themselves out of poverty.
The grant from The Anchor Foundation has helped to make all this possible.
CHRISTIAN SOLIDARITY WORLDWIDE
CSW is a Christian organisation working for freedom of religion or belief in over 20 countries. We protect, support and campaign for religious minorities who face injustice because of their religion or belief.
In Nigeria, we’re providing a lifeline for women widowed by attacks by the Fulani herdsmen. These attacks can involve hundreds of heavily-armed herdsmen entering non-Muslim villages, burning down houses and killing. Between 2015-2016, reports indicate 1,425 have died in such attacks. Through the support of The Anchor Foundation, women have turned their lives around by learning to make bags, detergent or toiletries, enabling them to set up micro businesses to support their own children and orphans.
United Benefice of Brailsford
The United Benefice of Brailsford employed an artist who developed Christian art from scripture, through paintings, sculpture and illustrations in order to spread the Christian message and enhance spirituality in schools, the parish and amongst clergy. The biblical messages in the art works offer greater inspiration in church services.
The Anchor Foundation sponsored the artist for three years to spread the word of God through art and to children in particular, to help them express themselves through the creation of art works. This has encouraged Christianity in school lessons and has offered another means of communication especially if they struggle with the written word.