£1m of value given to island by faith volunteers

Wednesday 04 July 2018

Guernsey faith groups contribute more than £1m worth of financial value to the island's community each year, a new focused audit has revealed.

The study, conducted in partnership with UK charity The Cinnamon Network, looked at the social impact and economic value that churches and other faith groups produce.

It found that 1,850 volunteers spend 102,500 hours annually working on more than 330 projects which benefit 45,400 members of the community.

Among the projects in Guernsey are Street Life Pastors – who spend Friday and Saturday nights looking out for the wellbeing and safety of those socialising and working in Town. Also, Guernsey Caring for Ex-Offenders and the Guernsey Welfare Food Bank.

Deputy Jonathan Le Tocq said he very much welcomed the audit and believed it would be as useful here as in other communities across the British Isles.

"Its publication is timely as government, with business, charities and third sector agencies, review how best to deliver, procure and fund services for the changing demographic," he said.

“Effective partnership involves properly assessing the worth and value of those services which are provided by the third sector and in Guernsey faith plays a large part. As someone who has seen this from all angles I particularly appreciate how beneficial it is to our community to have sustainable partnerships involving trained volunteers providing genuine support and care for the marginalized, the vulnerable and carers within our island community.”

Matt Bird, the founder of The Cinnamon Network, will be visiting Guernsey to present the findings of the audit and meet the groups involved.

He hoped the report will be used to start conversations with the States and other Guernsey agencies and as a catalyst for increased cooperation between faith groups, the public sector and the business community.

The Cinnamon Faith Action Audit achieved a 93% response rate from the faith groups approached through its local sponsor, the Guernsey Churches Audit Steering Group.

The Rev. Jon Honour, spokesperson for the group, said: “We hope that the Guernsey audit will highlight the part that the faith community plays in building healthy society through social action and community engagement, much of which is carried out by volunteers fuelled by their faith.

“As well as this audit being a cause for celebration, our hope is that the faith community will continue to work in partnership with other groups on the Island to encourage human flourishing, especially in addressing relative poverty and disadvantage.”