A church in Sevenoaks has been ensuring the elderly, isolated and vulnerable in their congregation are not going without a hot meal during the pandemic.
Soon after the lockdown measures were announced, members of St. Mary’s Church, Kippington in Sevenoaks, began to think about what they could practically do to support their community.
After a quick survey of what the congregation might need most, it soon became apparent that a regular delivery of food or meals would be very welcome in some households.
A small organising committee, led by Wendy Pritchard the Parish’s Safeguarding Officer, soon got to work, figuring out what might be possible:
“Luckily one of our congregation is a professional chef and she was very pleased to get involved and offer her services. We soon had a number of volunteers willing to do deliveries, pick up the supplies needed, and offer some freezer space.”
Wendy says that the next priority was to ensure that all the Safeguarding protocols were in place, as well as Public Health Guidelines:
“All the national and diocesan Safeguarding guidelines on how to carry out community engagement safely at this time came through, just as we were organising our plans, so we were able to ensure that we were following best practice advice on how to keep everyone safe.”
With everything in place, at the beginning of April, the weekly deliveries of home-made frozen meals began. Each household receives 3 meals per person each week.
“In our first week we delivered 42 meals, by the fourth we were up to 64. We’ve now even been able to help some people brought to our attention, who are not actually connected to our church family.”
Wendy says they’ve discovered that for those receiving the meals, it’s not just about the food, but the fact that people know someone cares about them and is thinking of them.
Brenda Ross, a member of the church who helps delivers the meals, agrees:
“People really welcome the weekly contact. Although we may be standing at the end of their path, they really appreciate the friendly face. It’s wonderful for those of us who deliver the meals too, as we’re so grateful to know that we’re doing something that is really helping people.”
The drop-offs are also a chance for people to ask for prayer, which Wendy says are fed back to the church’s prayer team.
“God has been so much a part of this. At any point we have needed something, guidance, even additional freezer space (!), our prayers seem to have been answered."
The team at St Mary’s have now built up a lot of experience, which they would be willing to share with others:
“Each church will have a different context as well as facilities available, but we think a lot of what we are doing could be adapted to different situations and we would be very happy to share our learning with others.”
Anyone wishing to make contact should email: Wendy.Pritchard@BerkeleyGroup.co.uk
- National Safeguarding Advice during COVID 19 can be found on the Church of England website here: https://www.churchofengland.org/safeguarding/safeguarding-and-coronavirus-covid-19
- For Diocesan community engagement and safeguarding advice during COVID-19 please click here