
by Tim Nuttall
Withernsea Methodist Church has brought back its warm space initiative to help support people through the autumn and winter months ahead.
Between now and the end of March 2025, the church is opening its doors between 11am and 2pm every Thursday to provide a comfortable environment where people can meet in warmth.
This free-to-attend provision is open to all members of the community and offers a space for individual peace and quiet, or a social setting to meet and talk to others. It follows a successful launch last year.
Each session will also feature a free book and jigsaw exchange, a games and activity table, and complimentary light refreshments including hot drinks and snacks. Access to the internet and power to charge phones and other portable devices is also available.
Mike Cox, church leadership member, said: “The Methodist Church of Great Britain is once again encouraging its network of churches to create warm spaces for the benefit of their wider communities. Withernsea Methodist Church has always been keen to be part of the community and to offer both spiritual and practical support for people.
“Feeling that many people in the area could potentially struggle through the autumn and winter months, last year we registered our church as a warm space as part of the Warm Welcome Campaign to help offer support on a local level. We are delighted to bring this support back for another year.”
The Warm Welcome Campaign was started by ChurchWorks, a commission that has brought together 16 major UK Christian denominations to unite and tackle the cost of living crisis in local communities.
Thanks to the work of the commission, and the support of church communities around the country, almost 4,000 registered organisations have already opened free, warm, welcoming spaces for the public.
The church will continue to offer its Food, Friendship and Fun session on the last Thursday of each month. Since its launch in April 2022, the free-to-attend social events, which offer the chance to socialise in a safe and relaxing environment, have grown in popularity.
They have also paved the way to showcase the talents of local performers, from poets to singers, who freely offer their time to entertain those who attend. Visitors can also have a simple lunch of soup and a bread roll, followed by a selection of homemade buns. The food is free but donations are accepted.
Entertainment coming up includes a performance by beachcomber and poet Dean Wilson on October 31. He will be followed by singer-songwriter Andrew Wells on November 28, with Mike Smith rounding off the year on the earlier date of December 19.
Mike Cox added: “Our Food, Friendship and Fun sessions helped to indicate the need for a more regular opportunity for people to meet in a safe, warm environment through the winter. This led to us producing a warm space charter which sets out our mission to ensure that everyone will be given a warm welcome, as well as a warm space. Everyone will be treated equally, with dignity and respect.
“If people want to share their reasons for needing the warm space, there will always be someone there to listen, help and support. However, we aim to offer a non-judgmental environment so that whatever the reason a person has for needing to come in, they’ll be treated the same as everyone else and never judged.”