On Sunday 2nd July, the Bishop of Southwark conducted a Service of Dedication and Thanksgiving to commemorate the completion of the refurbishment work to the College Central Block East.

The works, which were completed on time and within budget,  included re-roofing a large part of the nursing wing, both chapels and the kitchens as well as adding large amounts of additional insulation, new double glazed windows and doors onto the balcony, as well as modernising the interiors.

The Chairman of the College, Sir Paul Britton, is delighted. “We have been able to finance all this work while also funding the Nursing Wing and maintaining the College finances in good shape,” he enthused. “This is the largest building project we have undertaken for decades and the building now looks marvellous.  I warmly thank all who have contributed so generously to make this possible. Congratulations to everyone who has managed and executed the project so successfully.”

The project cost over £900,000 and took 32 weeks, with practical completion agreed on 28th April 2017. It was funded by a combination of grants from individuals and Trusts, in particular the Homes and Community Agency and the Garfield Weston Foundation, with additional help from the Almshouses Association, as well as our own reserves.

To read the Bishop’s address, click here

View this fascinating video to hear Fr George Wood’s World War II near-death experience over France. Not all our Residents are as fortunate as Fr George to have received help from the RAF Benevolent Fund.

The focus for this year’s Christmas appeal is the core work of our charity, the work we do day in, day out, 24 hours a day and every day of the year in providing our elderly and infirm residents with the level of care that they need.
The irony is that for many supporters the core work – that mundane stuff that needs to be done every day – is not particularly attractive. It is not snappy and exciting. It’s not sexy. It is not a wonderful, new initiative. But what it is, is essential. It is vital. It works.
And it makes a world of difference to the people who need it.
That’s why the Archbishop of Canterbury, The Most Revd. Justin Welby, is supporting this appeal. You can read his letter by clicking here.
Our fundamental purpose is to provide shelter and care to elderly and infirm Anglicans in need. For many the College has been – and still is – the provider of last resort.
This winter we are asking you to give – to give regularly if you possibly can – and to give as generously as you are able, to enable us to continue to help those who need us most by delivering on that fundamental purpose.
Last year we spent £1,845,111 on giving our Residents a better quality of life. That is quite a lot of money to a small charity like ours. Of this we raised £140,000 in donations and gifts.
Also last year we received 93 requests for help and information. That is the highest number we have on record and it indicates the urgency of the problem as well as the demand for the services we provide.
You might already know that more than 25% of Clergy are aged 60 years or above. But did you also know that this means the number of clergy retirements is set to increase dramatically over the next 10 years?
Not only that, local authorities are cutting back on the help they give. Government-funded care for older people is being increasingly rationed in England, leaving growing numbers to fend for themselves, according to a recent joint report by The Kings Fund and The Nuffield Trust.
Despite more people needing help because of the ageing population, the number of over-65s being helped by local authorities fell by 25% in the 4 years to 2014 and the number of older and elderly people left without help has risen.
On average it costs us about £930 a week to provide accommodation and nursing care for a Resident. More and more of our Residents need local authority help that is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain.
What that all adds up to is this: we have to go beyond the £140,000 we raised last year by an additional £35,000. That means we have to raise just under an extra £14,600 a month, on average, to meet the costs of caring for those for whom the College is the final safety net.
Whether you choose to make a monthly donation by standing order, or choose to make single donations, together we can do it. Please click here to visit our webpage for easy donation options.
Thank you.

Our dream is that elderly and infirm Anglicans with little resources who find their way to our door can always be helped here with dignity and compassion; that we can continue to give hope to those in need; that people like our Residents David and Hope Haggan can always find at the College the care, the comfort, the shelter and the spiritual support they need in their old age. They were only too happy to contribute to our Summer Appeal.

Click here to read their story. Please do, and having read it, please decide what you can do to help. Only you know what is right for you to give, and every donation is vital. Even a penny could help, but whatever you give, please support our important work.  Details of how to donate are at the end of the story.

Thank you

I am very proud to be associated with the College as a Patron because it carries out its essential work in such a calm, understated way. It is a uniquely special place, full of special people.

Without fuss, it gets on with doing the job of caring for people in need and puts all of its energies and focus into that. And did you know, it has been doing that for an amazing 120 years?

I am writing to you precisely because of the Christian traditions and values of compassion and generosity that we share.

As you read Myrtle’s story you cannot help but be inspired by her commitment, by her achievements and by her faith, and you cannot help but be moved.

You may not know it but, sadly, there are many elderly Anglicans like Myrtle who need all sorts of help and support.

This is where the College steps in, doing a truly splendid job of looking after older and elderly Clergy, Clergy spouses, widows and widowers as well as lay Anglicans who are in need of accommodation, support and care.

I am an active supporter of the College’s work. I give because I believe in the value and importance of its work to care for older and elderly people like Myrtle.

People who have devoted their lives to the service of others.

Click here to read Myrtle’s story. Please do and, having read it, please decide what you can do to help. Only you know what it is right for you to give, and every donation is vital. Even a penny could help, but whatever you give, please do support this important work.

Thank you so very much.

Dame Judi Dench

As a member of the national Remember a Charity consortium, we are taking part in Remember a Charity in your Will Week this September to help raise awareness of the importance to smaller charities like ours of gifts left in Wills.  Most of our funds come from the generosity of people like you and we hope that in time more and more of our supporters will consider leaving a charitable legacy to the College, to help us safeguard the future.

It’s a common myth that you have to be wealthy to help us by leaving a gift in your Will. Nothing could be further from the truth. After taking care of family and friends, it’s amazing what one final gift can do, no matter how big or small.

Whatever the size of the gift, we are extremely grateful for all charitable legacies left to us, as they help us to continue to provide a home and to care for elderly Anglicans in need.

Taking care of your loved ones and doing something legendary by making a final gift to the College in your Will is probably so much easier than you think.

Visit www.rememberacharity.org.uk for more information, or speak to your professional advisor about leaving a charitable legacy to the College in your Will.

Some people go to extraordinary lengths for charity…like this #ExtremeWillWriter.  But the truth is: leaving a gift to charity in your will is legendary enough….no matter how you’ve done it!

To find out more visit https://www.rememberacharity…

On day 2 of the Christian Resources Exhibition we received a visit from the Bishop of Chelmsford, the Right Revd Stephen Cottrell, who has agreed to become a President of the College.  Here he is on our stand with the Warden, Fr Howard Such

If you would like to join us at CRE, we are on stands B6 and B23. Click here for your complimentary tickets!

On our first day of exhibiting at CRE International’s new venue at the Excel Centre, London Docklands, we received a visit from the Bishop of London The Right Revd Richard Chartres. The pictures below show him with Fr Howard Such, Warden of the College.

If you would like to join us at CRE, we are on stands B6 and B23. Click here for your complimentary tickets!