Be Informed
Stoke Newington has more to offer than chic coffee shops. Step behind the iconic church opposite the park and meet some of the social justice projects that provide support and bring hope to the many who use them.
Our welcoming community space and kitchen hosts Hackney Winter Night Shelter, Hackney Migrant Centre, Hackney Food Bank and a project to resettle Syrian refugees.
Demand for these services is going up. Right now we're working on scaling up our infrastructure and redeveloping our space so more can be done. Join our mailing list to stay informed or contact us here.
UPDATE
We’re nearly there! Thank you to all who’ve helped us get to this point:
to our local community who’ve been so supportive.
to our donors who’ve given us generous grants including: City Bridge Trust, Garfield Weston Foundation, Allchurches Trust, The Beatrice Laing Trust;
to our inspirational architects, ‘Erect’ and our Project Manager Heather Stanley;
to the people of St Mary’s church for believing in this project and giving of their money and time to make this happen.
Building work is well underway and we are looking forward to opening the New Centre in April 2020.
The new Centre will offer flexible spaces for meetings, celebrations, gatherings and projects.
The community groups who presently use this space - the Hackney Migrant Centre, Food Bank, Nightshelter and many others will be rehoused elsewhere during the build and then welcomed back into a purpose built, hospitable, centre in Spring 2020.
Food is at the heart of the St Mary’s mission. Many of our projects revolve around food. Food brings disparate people together; sharing of food encourages participation and creates community. Food is symbolic of a world where some eat for pleasure but many more struggle to survive. We hope that more initiatives inspired by food might find a home here.
What are your ideas?
What would you like to see or do within the new centre?
Please keep your ideas and your enthusiasm flowing!
This is a Centre for all!
We run lots of events to raise funds and to raise awareness about the St Mary’s Centre. Click here to see what’s coming up and contact us if you’re interested in organising your own fundraiser.
For example, poet Savitri Hensman is making available on-line her recent collection of thought-provoking poems, ‘Spring Scents and Shell Smoke’. Have a read and in response, if you would like to download it and make a donation to the Centre, that would be much appreciated. Savi also suggests that anyone who lives overseas might like instead, to assist a similar local project that is close to their heart.
Cream Teas and Consultation on the Community Garden
North London Dirt Bike Ride 2019
A huge THANK YOU to Andrew and Phil for organising the North London Bike Ride and raising £4000 for the New Centre!
Thank you for supporting our Winter Market and Christmas Tree Market both of which raise money for the New St Mary’s Community Centre.
Carols by Candlelight at St Mary’s
Wow! St Mary’s Community Choir did us proud!
2nd Chance Cafe
Our 'pay as you feel' 2nd Chance Cafe - making use of upcycled fruit and veg - proved to be popular with our local community.
As soon as the New Centre is up and running we are looking to develop this project. Are you interested in getting involved?
We still need to raise money for the internal fabric of the Centre. If you are interested in organising a fundraiser for this please contact us.
Get involved
How should the Centre develop? What projects would you like to see take off? What should we put our weight behind? What does our community need?
Join the conversation and get involved. Join our mailing list or contact us here.
donate
If you would like to make a donation for the New Centre please follow the link below. Thank you!