Christian trust launched to back dreams

By Keith Morris

2005: A Norwich-based Christian community trust is offering to help believers make their dreams and visions for social action or mission become a reality.

The Trust, named Dreams & Visions, has been launched with three years of financial backing from an anonymous Christian benefactor to provide start-up funding for inter-church community projects across greater Norwich.

Its stated aim is: "to release the dreams and visions of Christians of all denominations working together to make a positive difference in Norwich and Norfolk".

The project has been developed by a group of Christians who got together following on from the churches-City Council dialogue consultation meeting held last September at St Andrews Hall.

The Trust has issued a leaflet explaining that it can offer up to a maximum of £10,000 of funding to each project for up to three years by which time it should become self-funding.

Trustee, and elder at Ipswich Road URC, Carol Preston, said: “We can provide a legal and financial structure for new initiatives. For example the Trust could provide bookkeeping, accountancy and fundraising services, insurance cover and CRB checks.

"We can also provide access to advice, training and effective networking with other projects. The Trust will be a seedbed rather than a managing trust and will not initiate its own projects but will serve and facilitate the visions of others,” said Carol.

“To be eligible for backing, projects must involve at least two people from different churches which also back the idea,” explained Carol. “Not all the projects we will back have to be new, although predominantly we want to encourage new work.”

The other trustees are Biddy Collyer, director of the Norwich Pregnancy Crisis Centre from Norwich Vineyard, civil servant Sam Pittam-Smith from St Catherine's, Howard Green from St Augustine's who works for the Norwich Primary Care Trust, lawyer Philip Hook who worships at St John's Roman Catholic Cathedral and Maryanne Richardson who works for Mid-Norfolk Youth for Christ, as a Primary School Worker.

The trust is similar to both the Farnham Christian Community Trust (www.fcct.org.uk) and the Leeds Christian Community Trust (www.lcct.org.uk or www.networkleeds.com).

For more information contact administrator Barbara Bryant at e-mail dreamsandvisions@rocketmail.com or ring 01603 861026.