Poverty, welfare and financial inclusion

The Church of England is working to end poverty, hunger, and problem debt in this country, and help create a more just economic system in which all people and communities can flourish.

Jesus said: “I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness”

John 10:10
three people talking at a table, debt advice banner in the background

Why we care

Life “in all its fullness” includes being able to support yourself and your family and having the chance to develop and use your skills and gifts. Too many lives are held back by poverty and lack of opportunity.      

 

What we do

  • We highlight economic injustice where we see it, challenging government and businesses to consider how their actions impact on the poorest and most marginalised.

  • We encourage and support church-led responses to poverty and problem debt.

  • We work in partnership with other organisations to campaign for an end to child poverty and hunger in the UK.

  • We carry out research about the causes of poverty and how to solve it.

  • We lead by example, including a commitment to pay the Living Wage to all of our centrally employed and contracted staff.

 

What you can do 

  • Join in the End Child Poverty and End Hunger UK campaigns.

  • Contact a church near you to see how you can get involved in their community work. Volunteer at a local homeless shelter, debt advice centre, or one of the many church-led activities in your area.

  • Find out what we are doing to create a fairer financial system through the work of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Just Finance Foundation.

  • Read about the work of Bishops in the House of Lords in making the case for laws and policies that help reduce poverty.   

  • Learn more about poverty in England and in your area, and about the work of Church Urban Fund in tackling poverty through the Church of England’s local parish network.

  • Pray for an end to poverty and economic injustice in our country.

 

In May 2016, the House of Bishops commended for study and reflection a paper which proposed a Christian approach to welfare for today’s society, called Thinking Afresh about Welfare: The Enemy Isolation