Light at the Heart of Westminster

LIGHT AT THE HEART OF WESTMINSTER Be Part of the Next Chapter

‘Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain.’

Psalm 127:1

Do you long to see our country transformed? Have you been praying that the United Kingdom might start to look more like God’s kingdom? Do you want to see Christians making a difference for Jesus in politics?

CARE exists to make that a reality: our vision is to see Politics Renewed, and Lives Transformed. For more than 40 years, we have been speaking God’s better story about human dignity, justice and protecting the vulnerable into our broken world.

We have engaged with hundreds of thousands of Christians to keep them informed about what is going on in society; we have equipped politicians, writing speeches, providing briefings and investing in relationships face-to-face; and we have empowered a generation of future Christian leaders through our hugely successful Leadership Programme, which has provided around 400 talented graduates with a foundation to shine for Jesus in the public square.

Central to all this has been our location. In 1988, a group of generous supporters (you may have been one of them!) came together to help buy a home for CARE. That home was, and still is, in Romney Street, just five minutes’ walk from the Houses of Parliament. Along the way we’ve seen - by God’s grace - some amazing things: the wording of some significant UK laws has its origin in 53 Romney Street!

But that home is now in need of urgent refurbishment. In 2023, we were able to renovate part of our ground floor, creating a modern space to serve our Leadership Programme. We now need to refurbish the remainder of our four-storey building, to help it become ‘fit for purpose’ for the 21st century.

For more than four decades, CARE has been ‘salt and light’ at the very heart of government. We’d love to invite you to come together with us again, and to pray and to partner with us, as we seek to put in place the foundations to help us continue to be salt and light in Westminster for another four decades and beyond!

Ross Hendry CEO of CARE

What we do Engaging the Church The Church is God’s action plan for changing the world! We help you think through the big issues by keeping you up to date with the news, providing you with resources, and sending speakers into churches across the UK.

Our Vision At CARE, our vision is simple: we want to see politics renewed and lives transformed. Some people have already lost faith in politics: our leaders let us down and our politicians break their promises. Politics, like everything else, is tainted by our sin and selfishness.

But at its best, politics can be a force for good. In Romans 13, we read that God appoints governments and gives them responsibilities. Yes, good government is God’s idea!

And when politics is working well, and our leaders promote good and restrain evil, we begin to see a society where everyone flourishes as God intends them to, where injustice is challenged and where the powerless are protected.

Our story began back in 1971, when, after a decade of social upheaval, secularisation and liberalisation, many evangelicals felt compelled not to remain on the sidelines any longer. 45,000 Christians came together to take a stand in Trafalgar Square at the Nationwide Festival of Light, the largest gathering of Christians in UK history.

Afterwards, the hunger to impact culture for Christ remained, and a trust was set up. In 1983, it was renamed CARE: Christian Action, Research and Education.

For over 40 years, CARE has sought to bring truth and grace into politics, working with some of the finest theologians, policy experts and cultural commentators out there. We believe Christians have a better story to tell, revealed in the Bible and modelled by Jesus. But we also believe in speaking with grace and humility, acknowledging our flaws and recognising the innate dignity of those who oppose us.

And we’ve seen God at work. We’ve seen the Church inspired and mobilised to shape policy on key social issues. We’ve seen God raise up faithful politicians who have spoken bravely into debates. And we’ve seen Him use our policy expertise to influence legislation on everything from abortion to modern slavery.

None of this would have been possible without the prayers and generosity of our partners, or without God’s blessing and provision.

Equipping Politicians We want to bless our political leaders. Our Policy Team are hard at work conducting research, producing briefings and drafting speeches for MPs, Peers and other politicians from all parties and faith backgrounds, in Westminster, Holyrood and Stormont.

Empowering Future Leaders We long to see a new generation of Christian leaders! Our Leadership Programme provides young Christian graduates with the chance to experience a study programme and an internship in Parliament or with a leading NGO.

What it looks like Engaging the Church

Empowering Future Leaders

We believe that all Christians are called to be ‘salt and light’ in the world, so we want to keep you fully-informed about what is going on in politics, to provide you with teaching on how to think Biblically about key social issues, and to inspire you to go and take action.

The CARE Leadership Programme has been running for over 30 years, and has provided 400 young politically-minded Christian graduates with a launchpad into their careers. We’ve seen several go on to become MPs (and MSPs), others become high-ranking civil servants and CEOs of charities, and one even become a Bishop!

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Our speakers team are regularly out on the road, across the UK. Last year we spoke to more than 10,000 Christians in person!

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CARE’s quarterly Prayer Diary has been running for decades and is used by around 20,000 Christians. We also have a wide range of ‘7 ways to pray’ leaflets.

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Topic Guides collate a range of Christian content for someone looking to understand an issue in detail, including articles by theologians, interviews with politicians, and testimonies. We distribute almost 20,000 of each edition.

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The Engage Podcast is targeted at Christians between the ages of 18 and 35, and is designed to help people think through how their faith connects with politics. One young person told us ‘I listen to it religiously’!

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Our Video Primers explain a range of social issues and why Christians should care about them. We are also planning on launching online courses in the years ahead.

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Our blog, sent out as part of our weekly email, provides Christian commentary on the biggest news story of the week for over 8,000 Christians.

Equipping Politicians Making an impact in politics requires patience and perseverance. Legislation can take years to pass through Parliament, and there are often setbacks.

But by God’s grace, we have seen successes in just about every area on which we have campaigned. Within the last ten years alone, we have: •

Drafted modern slavery legislation, now in force across Northern Ireland.

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Drafted an amendment which has helped more than 500,000 people to self-exclude from online gambling.

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Contributed in the campaign towards palliative care becoming a legal right for patients across England.

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Produced tax reports that culminated in the reintroduction of the marriage tax allowance in 2015.

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Secured age verification on all online pornography via successful amendments to the Online Safety Bill.

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Given evidence which persuaded Members of the Legislative Assembly in Northern Ireland to introduce long-term victim support.

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And much more…

But why just take our word for it? Here’s a quick interview with a recent graduate about the impact the programme has had upon them…

What is it like being a Grad on the LP? Being a Grad on the LP has been an incredibly lively and enriching experience. It has been a unique opportunity to engage directly with professionals in politics, develop different skills, and gain firsthand insight into the workings of government and leadership.

Each day on placement presents new challenges, whether it’s contributing to a policy briefing, attending discussions in Parliament, or navigating the fast-paced environment of advocacy life.

What have you learnt on the CARE Fridays?

The CARE Fridays aspect of the programme (alongside all CARE events!) has offered me a steep but rewarding learning curve, equipping me with both practical experience and a deeper understanding of leadership in action. Most importantly, it has taught me more on how to authentically live out my Christian faith in the public sphere, embodying the call to be ‘salt and light’.

How has the LP shaped your career opportunities?

The Leadership Programme has significantly broadened my career perspective. I now have a much clearer sense of the kind of impact I want to make in my career, whether in government, policy, or leadership roles more broadly. The experience has reinforced my passion for working in spaces where meaningful decisions are made, and it has given me the confidence to pursue opportunities that align with my long-term ambitions.

Why Romney Street?

Our Location

by Rev Lyndon Bowring

In 1983, when Charlie Colchester and I founded CARE, we operated out of the basement of a redundant Mayfair Vicarage with broken Victorian drains and mushrooms growing under the carpets. But we were thankful to have it rent-free!

As the ministry grew, we needed more space. Given the strategic network of relationships CARE was forming with Parliamentarians, we believed we should seek offices close to the Palace of Westminster. In 1988, thanks to the generosity of CARE supporters, 53 Romney Street was purchased, just a stone’s throw from the Houses of Parliament!

Many Christian charities and groups regularly use our office space, one of the only (if not the only!) locations which is free of charge in Westminster. But being in an ageing building has its challenges, from the lack of wheelchair access to repeated floods in the basement!

In the Victorian era, the area where CARE’s office is now located was described

by Charles Dickens as the ‘devil’s acre,’ infamous for its extreme drunkenness, violence, prostitution and criminal activity. How thrilling that today the light of Christ shines out in what was a very dark part of London!

Will you help us keep this light shining brightly into Parliament, our government departments, and beyond, to serve our nation?

CARE has been extremely blessed in its location for over 35 years: being located so close to Parliament enables us to be present during key Parliamentary debates, and to invest in relationships with both MPs and Peers. Our advocacy work is best-served by having boots on the ground!

Having a location in Central London also enables us to partner with other similarlyaligned organisations: hosting round-table discussions, developing thought-leadership and innovative solutions, and playing a keyrole in forging the alliances which are so key in advocacy.

Being based in Westminster is also invaluable for our Leadership Programme: first-class speakers from the Commons, the Lords or the Civil Service don’t need to worry about traveltime and can pop across to the CARE office to address our grads on a Friday.

When thinking about next steps for CARE, and how we can continue to grow in our impact, our Trustees considered various outcomes, including being located elsewhere. However, they came to the conclusion that our location in Romney Street provides a unique strategic opportunity, which we want to steward wisely.

After considering all options, we strongly believe that remaining where we are will best serve our vision to see Politics Renewed and Lives Transformed.

“As a former MP myself, I can tell you that having trusted partners is key to deciding which campaigns you run and which causes you champion.

Now, as Director of Advocacy and Policy, that we have our HQ in the shadow of Westminster - I can see Victoria Tower from the Policy Office! is of inestimable value to CARE’s engagement work in Parliament. Formal meetings, chance conversations, random invites and serendipitous introductions are all made more possible by our proximity.”

Caroline Ansell, Director of Advocacy and Policy at CARE

What you’ve said “Having a base so close to Parliament gave us unparalleled access to the Westminster ecosystem and a network of excellent speakers and contacts, some of whom have played a crucial role in my career journey.”

Tom Kendall, Leadership Programme Graduate

“Finding meeting rooms has been a real challenge for us at Christianity Explored, and the space at CARE has been a Godsend. The location is great and the room brilliantly designed and set up for hybrid meetings. These facilities have made a genuine difference to our ability to do ministry.”

Kay Carter, UK National Director of Christianity Explored Ministries

“You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.”

Matthew 5:13,14

“We have used the CARE office space at 53 Romney Street for our day away for the Elders of Hope Church. It was great to have a space close enough to mean we could make the most of the whole day without too much travel, but far enough away that we didn’t feel like we were in our own back garden! We had a great day planning and praying together and we were very warmly welcomed and cared for by the CARE team.”

Sam Gibb, Hope Church Vauxhall

How it makes a difference

Our plan We are intending to conduct works over a period of several months. Below is a plan showing the different stages of the redevelopment.

Already Completed Ground Floor New meeting room (5:13 room), seating area and kitchenette

In October 2023, we embarked on the first part of the redevelopment, and transformed our old Supporter Relations office into the ‘5:13 Room’, named after Matthew 5:13, Jesus’ call for Christians to be salt and light.

Thanks to the generosity of supporters, old carpets and dated furniture were ripped out, a new kitchenette was installed, and the room was repurposed as a new, multi-function meeting space.

The room now hosts our Leadership Programme graduates on a Friday (the Programme has now grown so much that we could not fit them anywhere else!), and the CARE staff for our team meetings. We also use the space when we welcome external organisations with whom we are partnering.

Phase 1 External Fabric Essential roof and basement repairs

Phase 2

Before:

Internal Fabric Secondary window glazing, rewiring, door entry system, fire doors

Basement Floor Kitchen, open plan meeting and video recording space, bathroom

Ground Floor Accessible entrance, new entrance area, accessible toilet

Upper Floor Offices Furniture, fire doors, decoration, bathrooms

After:

What it will cost

Phase 2

The following outlines the planned works at each phase of the process, along with the associated costs. A full breakdown is available on request.

During Phase 2, we will embark on a more ambitious set of redevelopments, concentrating on the inside of the building. Some of these are essential to the long-term health of 53 Romney Street; others will provide us with new opportunities for developing relationships and furthering working partnerships.

Phase 1 During Phase 1, we intend to fix a number of long-standing maintenance issues with the building. This will include: •

A partial replacement of the roof.

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Repairs to the brick work and fixing damp.

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Work in our basement, where we will install a pump and a series of one-way valves to prevent future flooding.

Phase 1 is expected to cost £288,000, for which we have already secured funding, alongside drawing on our reserves.

Works will include: •

Demolishing and redesigning structures on the ground floor to make them fully wheelchair accessible, including a new WC.

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Opening up the basement to become open-plan. This will create a new purposebuilt filming space for our upcoming video resources, and will provide a second meeting-space for large groups.

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Replacing our internal doors, which have been flagged in our fire risk assessment, installing new fire alarm and safe entry systems, and fitting secondary window glazing.

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Rewiring the building.

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Buying new furniture and fittings to use space more efficiently, as we expand our staff team.

It is forecast that Phase 2 will cost £835,000.

Three strategic goals Improving access At CARE we want to be an advocate for some of the most vulnerable in society, and to be a voice for the voiceless. In recent years, we have spoken out against the dangers of Assisted Suicide legislation for disabled people.

But we do not just believe in human flourishing at the end of life: we want to advocate for support for people with disabilities throughout their lives. This involves working directly with disability activists, listening to their voices, and developing partnerships based around trust and respect.

However, currently our work in this area is limited, as our building is not suitable for wheelchair access; this would also be an issue if we had a disabled member of staff or Leadership Programme graduate.

The Romney Street revelopments will ensure that the CARE offices are accessible to all, and ensure that we are practising what we preach when it comes to the importance of supporting those with disabilities.

Engaging a wider audience Video content is of increasing importance to us as we seek to engage God’s Church, and is particularly valuable in reaching younger supporters.

Our Engage Podcast has seen sustained impact among young audiences in the last year, especially among the 18-35 demographic, and this year we have been averaging more than 600 watchers/listeners per episode.

We have also seen the potential impact of video through our Topic Primer videos (particularly before the Assisted Suicide debate, where our video was watched over 4,000 times) and during the 2024 General Election (where our interviews with Christian MPs had a combined 6,000 views).

In time, we have plans to use video more ambitiously, through developing online courses, filming interviews with experts, and foregrounding people’s testimonies.

But currently, we are limited in what we can accomplish: the sound quality in our building is poor, hiring external venues is expensive, and we actually film our Podcast in the kitchen! Our new plans would see us create a dedicated filming studio, which will allow us to be more ambitious in what we can achieve.

Bringing people together At CARE, we have always talked about the importance of building alliances in our advocacy work. We are strictly politically neutral, and will work with politicians, campaign groups and charities from all political persuasions and faith backgrounds, as long as we have a shared goal in our work.

But the ability to host meetings in our building, just a stone’s throw from Westminster, provides us with a unique position, quite literally giving us a seat at the table!

Currently we have one dedicated meeting space, but the Romney Street revelopment would give us the option of a second. This would mean we would not have to choose between prioritising external or internal meetings, and would provide us with far more flexibility.

We are also keen to steward well what God has blessed us with, and to be generous to other Christian organisations, giving them a space to meet in central London which is well-connected and well-equipped, free-of-charge.

“Living Leadership really values the generosity of all at CARE in sharing their building with us for Trustee board meetings and recently for senior level interviews as well. We have always found the staff at CARE to be warm and welcoming, and the Westminster Room is well equipped to combine in-person and online meetings. It would be hugely beneficial to see more spaces in the building equipped in a similar way.”

Marcus Honeysett, Founder and President of Living Leadership

What it will look like

Downstairs Studio Currently, our downstairs office comprises a small meeting room, a secondary room with sofas (which is rarely used), and an old kitchen… and that’s not even mentioning the floods in the basement!

Under the new plans, we will knock through partition walls and create an open-plan studio. This will come with the flexibility to be used either as a second large meeting and training space (either for internal meetings, or to be shared with external partners), or as a filming studio, as we continue to develop our video work.

Entrance Lobby The CARE entrance lobby is currently not wheelchair-accessible, meaning that some people who we work closely with cannot even enter our building.

We would like to revamp our lobby and hallway, to solve these accessibility problems, and to create an accessible toilet on the ground floor. This will involve changing the layout, so that we can also make our building safer as well as more accessible.

Be part of the next chapter Thank you so much for your interest in CARE and for taking the time to read about this exciting new chapter in our work. We are so grateful for everyone who supports us, prays for us, and gives to us. We would not have this home, or be able to do this work, without you.

With your help, we can redevelop this special building in its unique location, ensuring our presence at the heart of Westminster continues for generations to come. This will give us a strong base to work from as we seek to see Politics Renewed and Lives Transformed.

We hope you’ll stand with us in prayer as we depend on the Lord for His provision, and thank you for considering whether you’re able to give to this project. If you’d like to discuss the plans further, or explore how you might support us, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with Julia or Katie who would be delighted to speak with you.

Julia Grant Director of Development julia.grant@care.org.uk 07968 562523 Katie Jones Senior Development Manager katie.jones@care.org.uk 07795 332620

“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 1:3-6

CARE (Christian Action Research and Education) Chief Executive Ross Hendry | Co-Founder Rev Lyndon Bowring 53 Romney St, London, SW1P 3RF 020 7233 0455 | mail@care.org.uk

care.org.uk

careorguk

CARE is a company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales at 53 Romney Street, London, SW1P 3RF | Company No: 3481417 | Charity No: 1066963 Scottish Charity No: SC038911