A Contemporary Interpretation of Old Favourites for the Emergency Services.

Attending a number of carol services could become repetitive, but the Emergency Services Christmas Carols at St Saviour’s Church in Guildford provided a modern twist as the church’s band and singers provided a contemporary interpretation of old favourites. The service was led by Rector Graham Shaw and Associate Minister Lucy Webb and representatives of all the emergency services were in attendance. I was joined by Imogen and Grace, my Police Cadets, whilst other police cadets performed admirably in serving drinks and mince pies to everyone. We managed to grab a photo of them all and also a photo of a number of the wonderful Street Angels who were also there, catching up with some of the people we went on patrol with earlier this year.

Festival of Christmas Carols in HMP High Down Chapel

Suzanne and I were delighted to join a number of prisoners, prison staff and visitors for the Festival of Christmas Carols in the Chapel in HMP High Down.

The service was led by Canon Reverend Egerton Ghonda and The Advent Message was delivered by The Bishop of Guildford, The Right Revd Andrew Watson.

For many prisoners Christmas can be a particularly painful season, stirring memories of family, childhood and past choices. The carol service and the act of singing helps to uplift the heart and singing together breaks down barriers. We were led by a choir and musicians formed of prisoners that are coached weekly by Liberty Choir, a national charity dedicate to the rehabilitation of prisoners. Another charity, 2makeit, provides opportunities for creative expression including music, art and writing; and during the service a group of prisoners performed A Londinium Nativity which had been written by Canon Reverend Egerton Ghonda.

After the service we enjoyed refreshments and the opportunity to talk to some of the many prisoners who had attended the service.

Raffle Prizes Sought for the Hive Christmas Fair – Park Barn!

It was lovely as always to see Katie Czop from Guildford Borough Council. Katie is Community Engagement Advisor and based at The Hive in Park Barn, she also helps me and the other Panel members of local charity, Guildford Philanthropy.

I dropped in some prizes for the raffle for the Christmas Fair at The Hive on December 22nd and Katie would be very grateful for any other raffle prize donations.

‘Beacon of Peace’ Evening – Celebrating Charity Support by Our Muslim Community.

Suzanne and I enjoyed an uplifting evening at the Beacon of Peace Celebration evening in the Masroor Hall near Farnham, where cheques were presented to some 50 charities and a delicious meal was served. It was wonderful to see such a collection of charitable and voluntary organisations being rewarded for their efforts. I presented a few of the welcomed cheques and said a few words.

Beacon of Peace is an initiative that was founded 40 years ago, in 1985, by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Elders Association, part of the UK’s oldest established Muslim community. Every year various fund-raising events are held across the UK attracting thousands of participants, and to date an astonishing £11m has been raised and over 660 charities across the UK have benefitted. In the current financial year, the organisation has supported five schools locally across Waverley and East Hampshire, in addition to funding more than  60 charities across the country.

Their mission is to alleviate suffering, assist those in need, foster community cohesion, support humanitarian initiatives, bring people together, enhance understanding, and promote peace among people from all walks of life.Ambitions we should all aspire too. Every penny that is raised goes directly to the beneficiary charities. All the organisers are volunteers and all administrative and operational costs are very generously covered by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Elders Association.

We also had the privilege of visiting the beautiful mosque alongside the hall and despite the best efforts of the awful weather nothing could dampen the spirits on such an inspiring night.

https://ameauk.org https://beaconofpeace.org

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Guildford Food Bank – The Big Give Campaign.

Guildford Food Bank is taking part in the Big Give this week. They are incredibly grateful for all the donations received so far, which has meant they have met their campaign funding target. They would really love it if you could help them to reach £20,000 by the end of the campaign week, which is 12pm on the 9th December.  Donations so far this year have not been enough to meet their costs and so this campaign is key to covering December costs when demand for their services is double what they see in other months of the year and also to get 2026 off to a good start. 

Situation

Food and energy poverty. We provide emergency food relief with parcels tailored to the family and the family size, enough for a week. Demand has increased for the past 3 years and with a reduction in state benefits in 2025 we expect the demand to increase further in late 2025 when families have to pay more for energy and still need to eat. We know that December demand will be extremely high and we want to be able to support these families with food and energy support.

Solution

Our food parcels relieve the stress of food poverty for a period of time so the clients can focus their resources elsewhere. We also provide supermarket voucher to provide clients with food choice in the festive season. We have engaged Energy Manage CIC to support and advise clients who are billed for their energy and partner with Fuel Bank Foundation for pre-payment meter clients. We want our clients to feel cared for and ensure they have enough warm food to eat, in a warm home.

Please share this with as many contacts as you can and also share their Facebook updates to spread the word across Guildford.  Thank you so much for supporting the food bank’s vital work to support the most vulnerable in our community.

YOU CAN HELP TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE THIS CHRISTMAS!

Please visit their campaign page here Guildford Food Bank Big Give

Thank You from Peter Cluff – The High Sheriff of Surrey.

Guildford Philanthropy Christmas Meet at Guildford’s New Lighthouse.

Having been the Chair for nearly eight years and still a Panel Member, I was very much looking forward to the Corporate Ambassador Christmas drinks held by Guildford Philanthropy. Since 2019, nearly 50 local businesses have signed up to become Corporate Ambassadors of Guildford Philanthropy. It is an annual commitment and the vast majority renew that commitment every year. It provides a positive virtual circle as local charities benefit, firms satisfy their corporate and social responsibility through a donation (and if they choose pro bono help and staff volunteering days) and in return Guildford Philanthropy holds events every year where the businesses can network and see first hand what their donations have helped achieve.

The event was held at The Lighthouse’s new location at the top of Guildford High Street, which had been visited earlier in the week by the Duchess of Edinburgh. Last year, as a result of the amazing amount of money Guildfrod Philanthropy raised with Sally Barker, the then Mayor of Guildford at the Mistletoe Ball at G-Live, £10k was donated to The Lighthouse who then were able to provide 400 local children from deprived backgrounds with a Christmas present.

Erik Jespersen, Co-Founder of The Lighthouse, with his wife Rebecca, outlined to those present the incredible work they undertake to transform lives through kindness, belief and hope across four Lighthouse centres in Woking, Barnsbury, Aldershot and Guildford. 

Everybody Needs to Cuddle a Goat Sometimes! – Huckleberries Nurture Farm – A Place of Care and Healing for Young People.

It is not every day you get to sit in a yurt in the middle of a wood in driving rain cuddling a goat; but I wish I could do it more often!

Huckleberries Nurture Farm is a wonderful place just to be yourself. It is a place of care and healing for young people facing emotional challenges, a wild learning centre enabling a purposeful journey of discovery, growth and learning, a community hub providing a space for connection, belonging, and opportunity and a forest school where children come together after school, to explore, create, and connect with nature. 

Suzanne and I spent a wonderful couple of hours with CEO Bev Cook and her team getting to know the young people who showed us the projects they had been working on related to Robin Hood. We also met Alfie the miniature goat and his fellow animals and were joined by past High Sheriff – Bridget Biddell, who is a supporter of the Farm.

It was wonderful to see how the young people who struggle in a classroom environment were able to relax, express themselves and interact with others close to nature.

Extra excitement was provided on the day, when very sadly, but very nosily, two big and very old oak trees fell down due to the excessively damp ground in the meadows nearby.

Carols By Candlelight – Hosted by Surrey’s Richard Stilgoe.

I always enjoy carol services, it signals the arrival of Christmas and brings a warm feeling of childhood memories and excitement.

But, the evening at the Church of St Stephen Walbrook in the City of London brought a heightened level of enjoyment and purpose. Held in aid of The Michael Varah Memorial Fund in the wonderfully newly renovated Sir Christopher Wren masterpiece, we were treated to an uplifting evening of carols featuring the Vasari Singers. Hosted by Richard Stilgoe, this was the 17th MVMF carol concert and we also heard about the amazing work the fund is undertaking with its collaborative charity partners including ‘Fine Cell Work‘ and the ‘Our Time’ art initiative delivered at HMP Send with the Watts Gallery.

Sally Varah reminded us that MVMF awards grants with hand-in-hand advice, encouragement and belief; aiming to support the whole person, to regenerate hope and help rebuild lives. It was wonderful to be a part of this memorable evening.

Surplus to Supper – No Parts of the County Left Unserved.

Suzanne and I had enjoyed the hospitality of Surplus to Supper at my predecessor, Shahid’s Summer Party last year But it was wonderful to return to find out more about the charity and how fast it is growing. I grew up in the Hampton and Sunbury area so it is always good to take a trip down Memory Lane, but I remember the pockets of deprivation that existed then and sadly still exist today. Surplus for Supper sources and distributes surplus food to those in need and fund-raises for local food banks and other charities. We were shown round by Andrew Osborne the Founder and CEO and introduced to both staff and the many volunteers that co-ordinate the arrival of surplus food and its onward delivery to those in need. Andrew is keen to link up with similar charities across Surrey to ensure no parts of the County are left unserved.

The charity, which has been running since 2017, now saves around 30 tonnes of food a week, and provides around 3000 free meals a month to communities in need. Surplus to Supper is based at Sunbury Cricket Club, but works across North Surrey and boroughs of West and South West London, delivering to over 180 different organisations. There are four strands to what the charity does:

  • Food redistribution: Fresh food that would otherwise have gone to waste is redistributed for free to support local foodbanks, schools, care homes, shelters, clubs, religious organisations and more.
  • Surplus café: The Surplus Café is run by a professional chef cooking surplus food. The ethos is to provide one free meal for charity from each meal sold at the cafe (Buy One Feed One Free). The menu is varied with a range of staple and special items and produce will change weekly, so what’s on offer will too. The café is open to the community.
  • Surplus shop: Every weekend the charity runs a Surplus Shop, providing good quality food which would otherwise go to waste. The Surplus Shop is for everyone in the community who needs fresh produce, and those that can are asked to donate a small amount to help Surplus to Supper to continue supporting local foodbanks, charities, school lunch projects and community groups across the local area.
  • Events: As part of the ‘Buy One Feed One Free’ initiative, the charity provides good quality surplus food right across the food industry for any occasion, with the income from this helping to provide free meals for people in need within the community.

Visit the website to learn more at; https://www.surplustosupper.org

FUNDRAISER FOR HOME START GUILDFORD – FEATURING JAZZ BAND – THE ACCIDENTALS.

FUNDRAISER FOR HOME START GUILDFORD – FEATURING JAZZ BAND – THE ACCIDENTALS.

I grew up in a house filled with Big Band Jazz as my father was a keen aficionado of the genre, so I was delighted to have the opportunity to visit The County Club in Guildford High Street for an evening being serenaded by a 20 piece jazz band called The Accidentals; which produced quite a sound! All in aid of the Club’s chosen charity this year, Home-Start Guildford, and including a couple of early Christmas numbers it was a thoroughly enjoyable evening.