Please read the latest update from the SVP about the work they do in our Diocese.
The SVP 2024 Christmas Appeal – ‘Doors of Hope’ – came to an end on 12 January 2025. Nationally, the SVP were able to meet their £100,000 target, meaning £60,000 will be match-funded thanks to the generosity of some of our major donors. This will provide important funds for our two Diocesan centres (SVP Deaf Centre and St Vincent’s Centre, Blackfriars) as they keep open their doors of hope, providing all year round friendship, comfort, clothing, food and guidance to those who need it.
The youth section of the SVP continues to make their own significant contributions for the benefit of those in need. The Christmas period gave school based Mini Vinnie and Youth SVP groups the opportunity to reach out to their local communities in a spirit of generosity and love. For example, the hampers Mini Vinnies from St William’s RC Primary, Trimdon organised for a local care home, and the sensory lap blankets produced for those living locally with Dementia and Alzheimer’s by the Youth SVP group at St Bede’s Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester (read their story here).
Tyne Central Council are currently planning a festival event which will be held at Ushaw College in May. It will be a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the good work of the SVP and its diocesan partners in the light of the Jubilee theme of ‘Pilgrims of Hope’.
Finally, the SVP officially move their National Office from Romero House, London to Bradford on 28 January 2025. From this date, the new registered office for the Society will be: The St Vincent de Paul Society, Allenby House, Rees Way, Bradford BD3 0DZ.
About the SVP:
The role of a conference varies from one parish to another, however befriending remains at the heart of what the SVP does. Visits take place at beneficiaries’ homes, sheltered accommodation or residential care. Every visit can be so different. Those who are elderly or housebound enjoy chatting about their past, hobbies and family. One SVP member shared how time seems to fly by during his visits to beneficiaries, one of which is over 100 years old, as they engage in conversation fuelled by tea and biscuits. Some beneficiaries prefer a phone call, so SVP members are only too happy to keep in touch in this way. The recurring theme when listening to SVP members talk about these befriending visits is always that they are as equally valued by both those visited and the SVP members themselves. For the housebound, lonely or downhearted, the power of personal contact must never be underestimated!
Nationally, there’s been a 49% increase in requests to the SVP for help over the past 24 months. Due to the cost-of-living crisis, more people are facing extreme financial difficulties. Equally, the cost of delivering our services also continues to rise. Parish SVP groups rely on the generosity of parishioners in their fundraising efforts. Equally helpful are donations of unwanted items, such as clothing, to the SVP Support Projects and shops in the Newcastle-Gateshead area, or to the Revive Centre in Sunderland.
If you have any questions about how to support the work of the SVP, email Deacon Patrick Rutherford at patrickr@svp.org.uk.
