Sandra Rice: “Small changes can make a big change.” – North End Pantry: “We want to reach people in the area

state would be to enable that.

“The Poverty Truth Commission brings you into a situation where you can make a change because you are talking to the people who have decision-making power and they are listening because they want to learn, and it’s dignified. Nobody thinks less of you because you are poor or are struggling or have been homeless. Instead, people recognise that you have some expertise, skills and knowledge that we all need.

“That gives you the power again that most people have over a substantial part of their life, where you can make a difference in your own life but also in the lives of other people, so you know you are making a difference in the world. You are helping other people’s lives to be better, which everyone wants to do.

“Humans are social creatures; we like to help one another out. Part of poverty is not just that you can’t support yourself; it’s not being able to help other people either because you’re so restricted in your own finances, your own time, your own resources. That is a really horrible place to be in. So to have people listen to you, to take you seriously, to implement your suggestions, to actually want to give you some control and give you the decision-making power, that’s a really wonderful experience.”

Drawing on her faith, Stef adds: “Every person has been created by God and that’s what gives us our dignity. Part of how we worship God is how we live lives that display God’s character to other people, and part of God’s character is a massive concern for people in poverty and therefore, one of the things that Christians are called to do, to worship God and to serve him, is to stand up for people in poverty, stand up against injustice and work for change so that poverty can be eradicated.”

Sandra Rice: “Small changes can make a big change.”

How do we protect and rebuild dignity and power, with people who feel powerless and small?

How do we nurture personal agency among people who, right now, need help?

Sandra Rice co-founded Migrant Support, a group in Manchester that actively responds to those questions day in, day out, as they work not merely to walk alongside people marginalised by society, but to end that

marginalisation. It is a lifeline and first port of call for many, providing practical support and social encouragement.

Church Action on Poverty has partnered with Migrant Support to help some of the people they work with to set up ‘Self-Reliant Groups’. Each SRG brings together a group of friends to support each other and meet regularly: sharing skills, learning together, saving together (small, manageable amounts like £1 per week), and possibly forming a micro-business. See www.church-poverty.org.uk/srg to find out more.

People arriving in the UK are often denied access to employment or support, but if our national systems don’t always reflect the compassion of our society, groups such as Migrant Support do. Sandra says:

“People who come to Migrant Support feel they have no value or they have not been heard. Things that are a worry to them seem not to matter to the whole society. They feel they are tiny in size when they come to us.

“At Migrant Support we encourage people to come together, to feel that this is a family for them. We create a safe place where friendly staff help them to move forward a little bit closer to employment, to formal education as well.

“Getting involved with projects that actually help you to feel a bit better might sound very easy or simple, but to feel better about themselves is a big thing on the road to getting that dignity back, to a feeling of fulfilment or feeling of identity, and being part of something.

“That’s a process that doesn’t come in one meeting or by meeting only one person or solving a problem. It’s a long journey and having people around them or in a group during this journey means a lot, because you not only gain the dignity of one person, but the whole group gains.

“One of the key projects we do is the befriending, and peer support. People who come to Migrant Support are mainly looking for very specific needs or problems they want to solve, like calling the doctor or struggling for housing, or maybe they’ve been fired or they haven’t been paid.

“Once the main problem is solved, the next thing is to reduce levels of dependency. They feel that because they can’t do things for themselves they need somebody else and in most cases that is because of the language, or because they do not know how to do things or are scared to have a phone call with somebody.