Together poverty stops with us

Speaker: Stewart McCulloch, Chief Executive of CAP

Hello. I’m Stewart McCulloch, the Chief Executive of Christians Against Poverty (CAP), and I’m absolutely thrilled to be introducing CAP to the Deloitte Christian Fellowship today. We are so excited to be your charity partner in this, our 30th year. Honestly, here at CAP, we’re so excited by what we might do together.
 

This year is momentous for us. For three decades we have been working across the UK, coming alongside over 100,000 people trapped in debt and poverty and training a further 100,000 people to keep their heads above water. The reality is, for too many in our nation, this struggle is real and often hidden. One in three adults in the UK are severely stressed about their finances; one in five has severe problem debt, and a similar number can’t afford life’s basic essentials.
 

But we don’t just see this as a crisis. We see it as a calling. Our work is deeply rooted in our biblical faith, particularly Isaiah 61. That’s just who we are. We’re a movement of over 1,000 churches, with 3,000 frontline workers and 30,000 supporters across the UK, across the whole Church, and from every background you can imagine.
 

Why are we so excited to be partnering with you, the Deloitte Christian Fellowship? Because we share a common heart to bring our faith into the present world of professional work. Your network’s own mission scripture, Colossians 3:17, perfectly articulates our shared belief. We have more in common than you might first imagine. CAP is an FCA regulated debt advisor that applies the Advice Quality Standard and the Money and Pensions Service standards as well. So we are both delivering world-class professional services—in our case, through local churches to our clients.
 

We both believe in what I call ​“integral mission”—that faith isn’t just for Sunday. It’s lived out in word and deed, not just in our homes or our communities and our churches, but right here in the workplace. We want to give you, the 750 members of the DCF, inspiring opportunities to see Colossians 3:17 outworked in local churches across the UK. You’ll have the chance to invite colleagues to events that spotlight the Church’s transformative work in partnership with CAP, strengthening your network’s impact as we share the vision that we all want to see.
 

Our hope is that as our partnership progresses, you’re inspired by the incredible work happening in churches across the UK to support those less fortunate than ourselves. We pray that we will inspire each other into greater Christlikeness, and through that, He will call us to use our gifts by outworking this inspiration into our calling to do more to build His Kingdom.
 

We also offer a gentle invitation to channel this inspiration by joining our movement against poverty—whether through praying for our clients, acting on opportunities to volunteer, becoming a life-changing regular supporter, or indeed partnering with us in your local church context. As we embark on this journey, we commit to being a Christ-centred, compassionate, bold, joyful, and collaborative partner. We are genuinely looking forward to walking alongside you all over the next couple of years.
 

The very heart of CAP is seeing people’s lives transformed from the inside out. Nothing expresses that impact better than a story of real change. So with that, I’d like to hand you over to Melinda to share her amazing journey of transformation. I really look forward to seeing you in person soon. God bless.

News Montage (Voice of various news reporters): The cost of living in the UK is rising and it’s changing people’s lives… So many people skipping meals is a sobering… saying that a third of employers are likely to make redundancies over the next year… The average household energy bill could surge above 4,200 pounds.

Speaker: Melinda
I’m 62 years young. I was born in Barbados. I have a mental health issue and when my boys were very young, I got very ill and I was laid off work. I think if you’ve got a mental health label, people don’t take you seriously. I was getting 64 pounds a week to feed and clothe myself and my children. I had to choose between buying something as simple as a bra—I didn’t buy it because I would have to pay like the gas or the electric.

The few things that I had started to break down. My fridge, my cooker, my television, and my washing machine all broke down within a week, and I went against my own principle of saving up. So I ran up over 2,000 pounds. I was also borrowing money from family members—see-sawing between paying my bills and not having enough to live on. Sometimes I couldn’t sleep at night because I was thinking, ​“Oh, I’ve got this to pay, I’ve got that to pay, and will the debt collectors be coming round?” The anxiety as to ​“How will this play out?” was very real.

I have had suicidal tendencies in the past and my future never seemed set. I suddenly felt because of my bills and because of my mental health situation, I was never going to make it. That I’m no good.
I was very fortunate because the doctor I was seeing suggested Wimbledon Guild, and they recommended me to CAP. When I contacted the number that they gave me, I spoke to Peter. And Peter was very, very helpful, very kind, and we went through the process to get me out of debt and have all my bills taken care of. Then one day, he invited me to the church and I went along. I was in awe because people were coming up to you and talking to you as though you were not a stranger, as though you were part of the family. It’s so uplifting.
 

I really feel that I’ve come home and I’m very glad to say that now I’m debt free. At first it didn’t seem real because I had been struggling with my bills for more than a couple of years. To know that they had sorted it out in three months and that I didn’t have to worry—it was such a relief. I can’t tell you, I was so happy.
Working with CAP has given me a desire to do better. I’ve actually started going to college; I’m learning maths and IT. Peter encouraged me to become a Befriender.
 

Peter: Having you there and saying, ​“Well, actually, I’ve recently gone through this process myself,” it’s a real comfort for other people to actually hear that you can get through the process and come to a place of flourishing.
 

Melinda: Totally different point of view now. I’m looking forward to see what tomorrow will bring and what the future will hold. I’m feeling comfortable in myself and in my place with God. It has to be the work of God because there was no way out, but God has made a way.
 

Closing Prayer: Father God, your son, Jesus Christ, looked out on crowds who were struggling with desperate need, and He suffered with them. He loved them. Lord, break our hearts for those living in poverty right now. By your Holy Spirit, grow such compassion in us that we are moved to action so that we make a difference in people’s lives, just like Jesus did. Lord, use us to fight UK poverty so that your kingdom might come and your will might be done. Amen.