History
The Isaiah Project partners with Ferndale Baptist Church to work with the vulnerable and disadvantaged offering support and in some cases housing.
The Isaiah Project has always been about friendship and making compassion real. In 2007 a group from Southend Christian Fellowship (SCF) hosted a meal every Wednesday for anyone on their own. The first week the team provided a three course meal and chatted to the 12 guests, within one month there were 90 guests each week. Many experienced problems with form filling, access to a landline phone, homelessness, eviction and much more. We initiated a coffee morning to help address these needs.
In 2008 Hazel Copping attended meetings in America and returned overwhelmed with compassion for those who woke up to ‘a terrible world’. As a result Hazel founded the Isaiah Project with SCF for the vulnerable and disadvantaged in the community, who found themselves in situations they could not change without a helping hand. The culture of the Isaiah Project would be one of hope, support and friendship, family, helping to ‘open doors to change lives’, an environment where all would be accepted irrespective of religion, race or gender, a culture that would reflect what the Bible says in Isaiah 61:
“Giving good news to the poor
Comfort for the broken hearted
Freedom for captives and prisoners”
In September 2008 The Isaiah Project rented a flat for two men, one homeless and one in very poor housing after coming out of prison, furnishing the flat from donations. We were then offered a three bedroomed house to rent so our number of residents grew to five in January 2009. We developed an ongoing system of befriending to give support and friendship to our residents.
Donations continued to be given and we started garage sales to fund The Project. This led to ‘The Project Shop’ being rented in 2009, on Southchurch Road, the first of our four shops. Our shops are not just places for selling furniture, clothes and bric a brac but places for people to gain confidence and for the local community to feel welcome.
We have developed a good working relationship with a number of property agents and landlords as well as working closely with Southend Borough Council in the process of providing housing.
Our team of befrienders and Open House groups provide encouragement, ongoing support and friendship to over 50 adults and over 40 children now housed by The Project.
We continue to grow, helping those in our community who wake up to a “terrible world” in need of compassion and support to get their lives back on track, have confidence to engage with society and maintain independence. All made possible by our amazing team of employees and volunteers. The need for The Isaiah Project is undiminished.