23 street angel volunteers from projects in Stockton, Middlesbrough and Redcar underwent conflict manage training on Thursday - brilliant to see so many enthusiastic people there, and once again many thanks to the trainer Stuart Malcolm for all of his support.
Paul was interviewed on Leeds Trinity student TV Yorkshire Voice about Leeds Festival Angels (at 8:03) Source
A TEAM of volunteers will once again be on hand to watch over thousands of music lovers at next month’s Leeds Festival. More than 100 Leeds Festival Angels will be at the three-day event at Bramham Park to offer help and assistance to revellers set to descend from August 22 to 24. Last year the angels handed out sun cream and bottles of water to thirsty crowds when temperatures soared at the start of the festival weekend. And when the rain came they provided spare sleeping bags and opened up an emergency tent so soaked festival goers could get some shelter. This year the Festival Angels will be running a lost property tent, a prayer cafe as well as offering help and assistance to anyone who needs it. Volunteers started helping at the festival in 2011 when event organiser Melvin Benn, of Festival Republic, offered a free pitch for a prayer tent. The following year Rev Andy Nicholson, vicar of Thorner, Barwick-in Elmet and Scholes, took over managing the volunteers. He came up with the Festival Angels name because he was impressed with the Street Angels’ work helping people in Leeds city centre on weekend nights. Rev Nicholson, 45, said: “Last year there were a lot of drunk people and people who were worse for wear, but we are not there to judge people. We are there to be a listening ear. “Being involved in Leeds Festival Angels is a very exciting part of what the church needs to be doing. “We’re reaching out to young people and saying that the church is there for them. “We care about them. That’s such an important message for us as Christians to put over.” Rev Nicholson hasn’t ruled out watching the occasional band at this year’s event. He said: “The people I saw last year and really liked were Alt-J and Imagine Dragons. “The Arctic Monkeys is probably the band I’m most looking forward to this year.” For more information, visit www.leedsfestivalangels.org.uk or follow Festival Angels on Twitter and Facebook. Christians from across the North of England will be heading to Leeds Festival next month.
The group of over one hundred volunteers won't be enjoying the music from the latest bands but will be running the Lost Property tent, a Prayer Cafe and offering help and assistance across the Bramham Park site. Work at Leeds Festival started in 2011 when a Methodist lady from the local village of Thorner approached Festival Republic to ask if the local churches could run a prayer tent. Festival Republic agreed and offered the churches space within the festival village. In 2012 the work had grown and Festival Angels was launched as a link to the Street and Club Angels running across the country. The team was approached to run the lost property tent in 2013 as the festival organisers knew that they could trust the church to run it properly! Detached teams were also launched in 2013 as a way of offering help to some of the 90,000 festival goers as well as water, sun tan lotion and sweets to the staff. Revd. Andy Nicholson, a local vicar and coordinator of Festival Angels, says, "being involved in Leeds Festival Angels is a very exciting part of what the church needs to be doing. We're reaching out to young people and saying that the church is there for them. We care about them. That's such an important message for us as Christians to put over." Festival Angels, which is part of the CNI (Christian Nightlife Initiatives) Network, is looking to link with other Christian based festival initiatives and offer support and resources to churches who want to set up a prayer cafe or detached work at local music festivals. For more information visit www.leedsfestivalangels.org.uk or follow Festival Angels on Twitter and Facebook. Street Angels Spain was also mentioned on ITV's Good Morning Britain on Monday 14th July by travel writer Simon Calder who said, in a report on the nightlife of Magaluf, "Magaluf has a Christian group called Street Angels who clear up the mess of the night".
Source (with vide)
The News & Mail joined with the Street Angels for a Friday night outing to get a true picture of Aldershot’s nighttime scene. A sympathetic ear is available for late-night revellers in Aldershot thanks to Christian volunteers who give up time to improve the town centre. The town centre pastoral team, known as the Street Angels, set up on the corner of Wellington Street and Victoria Road every Friday and Saturday night to offer water, lollypops, chocolate bars and spikeys – which stop bottles being spiked with drugs – to those on the town. There are even flip flops for ladies who have been over-ambitious with the height of their heels, and it is all gratefully received by the excitable 20-somethings heading towards Yates’s. With Yates’s now permitted to remain open until 3.30am on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, and to serve alcohol until 2.30am, the spotlight is on Aldershot to see if the claims of some residents it will cause ‘havoc’ on the streets are proven. The News & Mail joined with the Street Angels for a Friday night outing to get a true picture of Aldershot’s nighttime scene. During the evening, inebriated residents and visitors enjoying the town’s pubs and bars – one from as far away as Kingston – were not shy in approaching the table set up opposite The George pub to talk to the volunteers, who are all church members. Some help themselves to the sweets on display, the faces of others light up as the flip flops offer some respite to their aching feet, while many question why the volunteers are giving out the wares for free as they place handfuls of coins onto the table despite the protests of the team. The cash does come in handy, however, as it is used to replenish supplies. A small number of party-goers are excited by the unusual sight of the market stall set up on the pavement and make jokes or comments as they pass. Whatever the basis of the contact, though, the presence of the team prompts engagement and some soon begin to open up about their lives. Reverend George Newton, from Holy Trinity Church, said: “Some people end up opening up about quite a lot of things. As Christians we offer to pray for people and people take us up on that. They start off talking about wanting to win the lottery and then all of a sudden open up.” Along with Jonathan Wiggam, associate minister at Holy Trinity, he set up the group for a one-off night 10 years ago and it has grown to encompass 30 volunteers. Rev Newton said: “We never told the police we were coming out and we had some very strange looks. But within a few months they had noticed a difference and it was actually their request that we start coming out more than once a month.” Mr Wiggam said that the town centre was now quieter than it used to be in years gone by. Volunteer Kim Platt, 24, said she got involved to serve God and found that some people who visited the team would attend church afterwards. Peter Frampton, 59, who attends the KC21 church in the Kings International Centre, said: “You never know what you’re going to get from one night to the next. We’ve seen people who have had their lives turned around because of a chat with us. “It’s evangelism, but it’s by doing, not by bashing people over the head with a bible." As the clock ticked towards midnight, the rate of police cars driving down Victoria Road increased, as did the length of the queues outside various bars. One group hug, on the request of a visitor, later, and several bottles of water lighter, the team members turned in but it is safe to say the town centre has benefited from some positive vibes and much-appreciated care and attention, thanks to their work that night. |
|
ROC Angels - an initiative of ROC (Redeeming Our Communities)
Charity - 1139817 / Registered Company - 7327258 Postal Address: ROC Angels, c/o The King's Centre, Park Rd, Halifax, HX1 2TS E-Mail: [email protected] (founder / CEO) / Phone: 07725501465 |