Sheffield church awarded £10k of lottery funding

A Sheffield church has been awarded £10,000 in National Lottery funding to support its work in the community.
left to right Judy Thompson, Sue Law (church warden), Janet Wild, and Revd Bob Evansleft to right Judy Thompson, Sue Law (church warden), Janet Wild, and Revd Bob Evans
left to right Judy Thompson, Sue Law (church warden), Janet Wild, and Revd Bob Evans

Heeley Parish Church, based on Gleadless Road will use the cash to fund a community survey aimed at discovering the needs of residents.

Heeley Parish Church was established in 1846 and has been serving the community ever since. The area has many unmet needs and the survey will help to identify the greatest priorities.

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Heeley Parish Church, or Christ Church Heeley, as it is sometimes known, has been serving residents for over 170 years and plans are in place to develop the use of the church to become a community hub.

The church has plans to refurbish its facilities including removing the pews, leveling the floors, providing efficient heating and lighting. It has all the permissions required to modernise the Grade 2 listed building, and most of the funding.

Vicar Bob Evans said: “We want to do the community survey now so we can be getting ready for the big opening after the refurbishment.”

The survey will be aimed at all age groups, and family types, and exploring needs such as debt counselling or advice, arts and crafts, dance, well-being and mental health, sports and exercise and more.

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A community fun day will be held in the spring and will showcase the new facilities at the church.

The new funding from The National Lottery Community Fund, which distributes money raised by National Lottery players for good causes and is the largest community funder in the UK will enable the community survey to be led by Futurekraft, a project management company based in Bradford.

Revd Bob Evans says: “We’re delighted that The National Lottery Community Fund has recognised our work in this way.

“Now, thanks to National Lottery players we will be able to press on with our plans to broaden the range of opportunities available to the whole community.

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“This is important because the church belongs to the community, has some fantastic facilities and we want to see them used to their full.”

The National Lottery Community Fund is the largest community funder in the UK.

A spokesman for The National Lottery Community Fund said: “We’re proud to award money raised by National Lottery players to communities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Since June 2004, we have made over 200,000 grants and awarded over £9 billion to projects that have benefited millions of people.

“We are passionate about funding great ideas that matter to communities and make a difference to people’s lives.

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“At the heart of everything we do is the belief that when people are in the lead, communities thrive. Thanks to the support of National Lottery players, our funding is open to everyone. We’re privileged to be able to work with the smallest of local groups right up to UK-wide charities, enabling people and communities to bring their ambitions to life.”

For more information visit the church website at https://www.heeleyparishchurch.co.uk