Jesmond Street Pastors Newcastle upon Tyne
Annual Trustees Report 2022
2022 was the sixth full year of operation of Jesmond Street Pastors since its incorporation in August 2016. As with other charities and organisations, operational activities began to get back to normal after the restrictions imposed by the Covid pandemic were lifted.
The Annual General Meeting of Jesmond Street Pastors was held on 7 November 2022.
Jesmond
Jesmond is an affluent residential suburb and is split into two electoral wards just north of the centre of Newcastle Upon Tyne. The population is about 12,000. The area consists of a mixture of residential homes, in mostly Edwardian and Victorian terraces. There is a large student population mainly accommodated in multiple occupancy houses. There are many cafes and restaurants, boutiques and small supermarkets centring along St Georges Terrace, Acorn Road, and Osborne Road. Jesmond Street Pastors patrol the section of Osborne Road where the nightlife is based around several chic cocktail bars. Our base of operations is Jesmond Methodist Church, located on St Georges Terrace.
Street Pastors
The Street Pastors initiative was pioneered in London in 2003 by Ascension Trust (https://www.ascensiontrust.org.uk/). A street pastor is a trained volunteer who is a Christian and is part of a local church, and who is concerned for society and their local community. They patrol in teams of men and women, often on a Friday and/or Saturday night, to care for, listen to and help people who are out on the streets. They are willing to engage with people, whatever their perspective on life and wherever they hang out, working in collaboration with other agencies and projects. See https://www.streetpastors.org/ for more information about Street Pastors.
Each local Street Pastor project is approved and set up by the Ascension Trust, which is the governing body behind Street Pastors, and run by a local coordinator with support from local churches and community groups, in partnership with the police, local council and other statutory agencies.
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Currently, over 220 towns and cities around the UK have a Street Pastors team. In addition to Street Pastors, there may be prayer pastors, who support the local team with prayer throughout the patrol period. Each team will have a management committee and trustees elected from local churches.
Since 2014, some Street Pastors have received additional training as Response Pastors, who provide support to those affected by a disaster or crisis. Response pastors can be called upon any day or night to support and assist where appropriate. A response pastor is a crucial point of contact and an additional support to the established emergency services. See https://www.streetpastors.org/about-us/response-pastors/.
Jesmond Street Pastors Operational Aspects
Throughout 2022 the team maintained their Friday evening patrol. Patrols were busier than previous years with students out in large numbers, making up for lost time when Bars were closed due to the Pandemic. Licensing hours have been maintained and all licensed premises were the same as previous years with one or more retail food outlets having changed ownership.
In September 2022, the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) invited us to continue our membership of The Safer Transport and Women’s Safety in Vulnerable Places projects. The make-up of our Friday patrol is an early patrol on the Metro system from West Jesmond to Monument stations and then our foot patrol on a section of Osborne Road and the streets of Jesmond adjacent to the bars on Osborne Road.
The Bus Patrol on Thursday afternoons, which was introduced in November 2021, finished in March 2022.
Jesmond Street Pastors continued to act as the lead team for Street Pastors and Street Angels in the projects and received the funding for all the teams, which was then re-distributed onwards to the teams.
We started the year with eight Street pastors and ended the year with seven. No new street pastors were recruited in 2022. New Street Pastors undergo standard Ascension Trust training programme for new recruits. All Street pastors have to undergo a Disclosure and Barring Service check.
As reported in 2020, four Street Pastors in Jesmond have been trained as Response Pastors and are now ready to be deployed to major situations.
Our Coordinator keeps in touch with local councillors and the Keep Jesmond Clean team, looking at ways to reduce the volume of glass on the streets and how the street pastors can contribute to public safety on the streets of Jesmond.
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Even though we are a very small team in Jesmond, there is evidence to show that we are making an impact.
Management Committee
During the latter part of the year, the Management Committee have met in person and, where necessary, have been kept up to date via email.
Their role is to ensure that the project continues to operate smoothly. They have checked that the project conforms to the General Data Protection Regulations. In addition, they monitor income and expenditure and plan ways to raise funds. They also check that the project conforms to Charity Commission regulations and follows Ascension Trust guidelines.
Trustees and Management Committee
There have been no changes to the Management Committee in 2022.
The list of Trustees is as follows.
Chair and Coordinator : Mr Chris Lincoln, Methodist Church. Secretary : Mrs Margaret Graham, Jesmond Methodist Church. Treasurer : Mrs Janet Anderson, Jesmond Methodist Church. Committee members :
Dr Laura Graham, Methodist Church.
Mrs Jean Degenhardt, Jesmond United Reformed Church. Rev Canon Brian Hurst, St George’s Jesmond. Mr John Waddell, Church of the Holy Name, Jesmond. Rev Alison Wilkinson, Jesmond Methodist Church.
We thank our officers and Trustees for their support and prayers during 2020.
It is hoped through time that there will be a representative from all Jesmond Churches on the Management Committee.
Mr Chris Lincoln, as Chair of Trustees, spends much of his time liaising with the police and local councillors as well as speaking to the Churches in Jesmond to encourage more volunteers to come forward as Street Pastors or Prayer Pastors.
Financial Report
Jesmond Street Pastors is a small project and for its finances relies very much on donations from the local churches, the community and the general public.
We received funding from Northumbria Police as part of Street Pastor involvement in the Safer Transport and Women’s safety in Public Places projects. This funding was for operational costs. As lead team we received all the funding. This funding £6350 was shared equally between the four Street
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Pastor teams in the area – Jesmond, Newcastle, Whitley Bay, and Sunderland - as well as Street Angels who operate in South Shields.
Expenditure includes essential items such as a mobile phone, new uniforms and kits, and insurance for the street pastors. The License fee to Ascension Trust is obligatory. The expenditure on the Christmas meal is a way of thanking our street pastors for the time and effort they give as volunteers.
Our audited accounts are available separately. We are grateful to our Auditor, Mr David Stabler, for his help and advice.
Summary of our accounts for 2022:
| INCOME EXPENDITURE Northumbria Police £2,987.18 Mobile phone £180.09 Donation £100.00 Insurance £221.52 Christmas Meal donation £40.00 Ascension Trust License fee £1,200.20 Uniforms and kits £1,721.82 Christmas meal £285.35 Total Income: £3,127.18 Total Expenditure: £3,608.98 |
INCOME EXPENDITURE Northumbria Police £2,987.18 Mobile phone £180.09 Donation £100.00 Insurance £221.52 Christmas Meal donation £40.00 Ascension Trust License fee £1,200.20 Uniforms and kits £1,721.82 Christmas meal £285.35 Total Income: £3,127.18 Total Expenditure: £3,608.98 |
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| BALANCE SHEET Balance at 01/01/2022 £8,058.30 Income £3,127.18 Total Income £11,185.48 Less Expenditure £3,608.98 Closing Balance at 31/12/2022 £7,576.50 |
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| BALANCE SHEET Balance at 01/01/2022 £8,058.30 Income £3,127.18 Total Income £11,185.48 Less Expenditure £3,608.98 Closing Balance at 31/12/2022 £7,576.50 |
In conclusion, we pray that Jesmond Street Pastors will continue to support the night-time economy in Jesmond, and care for, listen to and help people who are out on the streets.
Margaret E Graham Secretary, Jesmond Street Pastors July 2023
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