THE SALVATION ARMY

How many of us buy a coffee every day? Many of us will. But how many of us buy a coffee from somewhere they know the money will be used to support those living here in Jersey? Emily Smith, community centre manager for The Salvation Army, explains

Nestled away on Minden Street behind the car park is The Salvation Army. With its bright red doors and iconic shield, the Jersey hub supports hundreds of islanders every year. From our base in St Helier, we run a community café and charity shop. We work with several other agencies and charities, run a food bank, support islanders leaving sheltered accommodation to move into rented homes, work with volunteers on back to work placements and much more.

Just last year, we supported hundreds of individuals and invested thousands of pounds in buying food to feed those within the community. In April 2019, the pandemic hit our island, and we saw a huge rise of people financially struggling. We couldn’t sit back and do nothing and decided we needed to do something to help. We worked in partnership with existing food banks, The Grace Trust and Saint Vincent de Paul, to coordinate a food bank from our site. Our team of volunteers delivered to 600 people a week at the height of the crisis. Between March and August last year, we distributed more than 18,000 tins of baked beans,

6,000 loaves of bread, 14,500 tins of tuna and 11.1 tonnes of rice. We are still supporting a number of those individuals now. As well as offering financial support, we also provide pastoral support and a listening ear. The Salvation Army is not only a charity but a church too. We operate in more than 130 countries globally, and at the centre of what we do is our church. There is always someone available in the café to talk to during our opening hours, and we meet every Sunday at 10.30am for our church service. We are currently meeting in various locations, so please keep an eye on our Facebook page for more details.

At the heart of our hub is our community café, which is open Monday to Friday between 9am until 4pm. Every day from our café we serve free, homemade soup made on site by our café assistants. The café is a meeting place for people who may feel lonely or isolated, it’s a welcoming place where everyone is treated as equal and with dignity and respect, and it’s a safe place. As well as serving soup, we have a range of affordable food on offer. The café also acts as a meeting place for various agencies doing incredible work on the island.

And the good work doesn’t stop there. We are also passionate about protecting our planet. As well as running our charity shop, we manage 60 green clothing bins across Jersey. We actively promote the benefits of buying secondhand clothing and think it is really important the clothes sold in our shop are affordable. Our green clothing bins help keep less than 1% of textile waste from going to landfill.

The green bins are emptied regularly by The Salvation Army Trading Company and the majority of the clothes are repurposed and used for things like home installation or cleaning products. We also benefit financially from the clothing bins and thousands of pounds is returned to Jersey every year thanks to you donating clothes.

For many people in Jersey, going to work can be a huge step, which is why our volunteer placements are so important. We have been working with Highlands College for a number of years and support students studying on their Life Skills course. We also work with the government and the Back to Work recruitment service, and Jersey Employment Trust to offer volunteer placements to islanders looking for work. We have volunteers in both our café and charity shop, as well as helping us make and deliver our food parcels.

We couldn’t do any of this work without donations, grants and money spent in our café. Something as simple as spending £1 on a cup of tea or £2 on your daily coffee means we can continue supporting people here in Jersey. Next time you’re in St Helier and fancy a brew, why not come and see us through the big red doors on Minden Street. 

For more information like our Facebook page [The Salvation Army – Church and community work in Jersey], follow us on Instagram [salvation_army_jersey] or pop in and see us.

La Lilou Boutique

La Lilou Boutique specialises in beautiful and unique children’s clothing from newborn up to age 16. You will find well known brands including Tommy Hilfiger and Timberland, as well as Spanish brand, Mayoral who offer high quality, versatile pieces bursting with personality and fun. If you're looking for something a little bit different, head to La Lilou Boutique who can help make your child stand out from the crowd.

From July, La Lilou Boutique will also be stocking Ralph Lauren in ages 0-16 years.

La Lilou Boutique

4 Bath Street, St Helier 01534 724946

Water Is All Around Me

Jersey Water has published a specially commissioned children’s story book 'Water is all around me'. In the story, a little girl called Lucy and her friend Colin the Crab discover why water is so special and how important it is they protect it. Children can spot lots of local landmarks such as Mont Orgueil Castle, Corbière Lighthouse and Val de la Mare Reservoir as well as learning the process of how water travels from sky to tap. For more information visit www.jerseywater.je/storybook