Cost of living support

West Berkshire Council have a a range of help available in their Cost of Living Support Hub

You can use this benefit checker to find out if you are claiming all you can.

Bridge Church Winter Crisis Fund is for anyone in Bridge Church facing financial uncertainty because of the cost of living crisis. Even to those who have not previously experienced the need to worry about how to pay their bills, heat their homes or put food on the table. The fund can help by supplying supermarket vouchers or making direct payments to suppliers.
Apply by mailing familyfund@bridgechurchnewbury.co.uk or speak to your Small Group leaders or those managing the fund: Mark, Aimee or Russell. There will then be a form to complete. Please self-refer wherever possible.

Emergency Financial Support

Bridge Church Family Fund
For anyone in Bridge Church that needs emergency support: financial or practical. For example: to buy food for the week, to pay an unexpected bill, replace an essential appliance or for school uniforms and seasonal clothing.

Apply for support by mailing familyfund@bridgechurchnewbury.co.uk or speak to your Small Group leaders or those managing the fund: Mark, Aimee or Russell. Please self-refer wherever possible.

You can also donate to this fund by bank transfer (please use the reference Family Fund) or via our Giving page on our website or My Giving on your My ChurchSuite Menu (select Family Fund in the drop-down box).

Overcoming debt

CAP Debt Centre
The Christians Against Poverty Debt Centre in Newbury currently offers Debt Help. CAP Debt Help is a completely free, expert debt help service that will support you all the way through to becoming debt free. Find out more and get help through the CAP website. Or contact Colin Cunningham, Newbury CAP Debt Centre Manager directly via email colincunningham@capuk.org or phone 07393 496480.

In Newbury, the CAP Debt Centre is run as a joint partnership between Bridge Church and St. Nicolas Church.

West Berkshire Foodbank

If you are struggling for food, please contact West Berkshire Foodbank. To get help from the Foodbank, you will need a Foodbank Voucher. They can be electronic vouchers or a red paper voucher.

Referral agencies can give you a red paper voucher. Citizens Advice, children’s centres and health visitors are all referral agencies. To find out more about the agencies that hold vouchers and how you can get help, please contact Foodbank.

For an electronic voucher, contact Crisis Foodline on (01635) 760560. They will talk through your situation, and if appropriate, give you an electronic voucher number, which will enable you to get free food from one of the local Foodbank Centres.

We love the Bible and would be delighted to share it with you if you don’t already have one.

• If you are a smartphone user head to YouVersion to download the Bible App for free. It contains multiple languages and versions in text and audio formats.
• If you would like a physical Bible that you can leaf through and explore just drop us an email on admin@bridgechurchnewbury.co.uk to request a free Bible. We will need details relevant to delivery.
• Alternately, if you would like to buy yourself one but don’t know where to start we can recommend Shoemakers Christian Bookshop in Newbury. They have a wide selection of Bibles and other Christian books.

I am in crisis

Mental health emergencies are serious. You’re not wasting anyone’s time.

• If you feel like you might attempt suicide, or may have seriously harmed yourself, you need urgent medical help.
  Please: Call 111 NHS Direct, open 24 hours a day, or go straight to A&E.
• You can also call the Samaritans FREE, day or night on 116 123 if you need someone to listen. Other ways to contact the Samaritans can be found on their website.

I need help with my ongoing mental health

• The charity Mind has a lot of excellent information in one place – from helplines to useful information about how to support yourself or someone else.
• For counselling we can recommend Willows Counselling in Swindon

How can the church community help me?

• We would love to come alongside you as a supportive community. As a church we are made up of multiple Small Groups. These groups are our first port of call for pastoral support for anyone in the church. Find out more about our Small Groups here.
• When you have a specific pastoral or support need we have a wonderful team of volunteers called the Pastoral Support Team. They can offer confidential, non-judgmental, practical and emotional support if you are going through a difficult season. Email admin@bridgechurchnewbury.co.uk to ask about the Pastoral Support Team.

“Why am I here?”, “If there is a God why would they allow suffering?”, “Is there more to life than this?”

If these are the types of thoughts that you are thinking about we would love to chat with you. Check out our Questions of Faith page.

If you believe that Jesus is the son of God and would like to follow his command in the Bible to be baptised, please get in touch with us. We would love to hear from you.