Pecan is launching an exciting new project in April 2012, funded by the Big Lottery, called Moving On.  Consequently we are looking to recruit new staff.  Click here for full job advert

Please find job descriptions and person specifications below:

Moving On Project Manager (female)                       (closing 9am, 20th February)

Moving On Lead Coach Mentor (female)                     (closing 9am, 20th February) 

Moving On Administrator                                            (closing 9am, 5th March)

Moving On Coach Mentor (female)                             (closing 9am, 2nd April)

For more information about the project please read our Moving On Project Outline

Please e-mail your CV with a covering statement of no more than 2 pages of A4 (Arial point 12) specifying how you meet the selection criteria to val.freeman@pecan.org.uk.  Please also complete and submit a monitoring form with your application.

For further information please speak to Val or Chris on 020 7732 0007.

On Thursday 22nd December, thanks to the generous donations of our supporters, we were able to furnish 44 families with all the ingredients for a lovely Christmas dinner.  The building was buzzing with volunteers and staff distributing bags filled with Christmas dinner essentials to families going through a financial crisis, who might otherwise not have been able to afford a special meal.  One recipient said, “No one is willing to help in this country and it is so touching to find an organisation like this; Christmas will be good this year.’”.  Thank you again to everyone who put their hand in their pocket for this special initiative!  God bless you!

Phil Baldwin

Phil Baldwin who has managed the finances at Pecan since 2008 has now moved to a new life on the sunny south coast.  Phil has done wonders for the charity during some very tough financial times.  His skills and humour will be greatly missed by all.  We all wish him and his family well as they move home and settle into their new life away from London.  We will hold them all in prayer.

With Phil leaving we are pleased to welcome Zita Selvanathar to the post of Finance and Office Manager.  Zita started on 9th January and had a week to gather all the information from Phil!  She joins us with many years of experience of running finances and systems for a housing association in central London.  Zita can be contacted on the usual number and by email on zita.selvanathar@pecan.org.uk

We are pleased to welcome our new Executive Director, Chris Price.  Before working at Pecan Chris was Director of Development at Southwark Diocesan Welcare.  Previously he worked with the Shaftesbury Society and an HIV support charity.  He is excited about coming in to Pecan at a transitional time in the organisation’s development.  Chris says, “There are a lot of opportunities for Pecan over the coming months and years and I’m looking forward to working with the staff, volunteers and trustees to enable Pecan to serve our community.”

Outside of work he has an active life through his involvement with his church, scouting and amateur dramatics.  He is married to Debbie and they have four children.  Most importantly, he is a passionate supporter of Aston Villa!

Anyone interested can attend our Annual General Meeting (re-scheduled from November 11), although only established members will be able to vote on the presenting issues.  Details below:

Wednesday 22nd February 2012, 6pm

Pecan, 121 Peckham High St, Peckham, SE15 5SE

For further information please contact Chris Price, Executive Director on 020 7732 0007 or chris.price@pecan.org.uk

’21 Stories from Peckham: Never Stop Believing’ A compilation of 21 stories revealing the impact that faith and action are having in people’s lives in Peckham, and why over the past 21 years we’ve never stopped believing.

 Receive a copy of the book as a thank you gift when you donate £20 or set up a £5 standing order with Pecan. 

The stories reveal how a seed as small as a grain of mustard can change the landscape when it’s planted in the right place.

 As Jesus said a city on a hill cannot be hidden. This book is one way we are inviting you to see what we  do, to meet some of the people we work with, and to consider your own part in making this light even brighter.

Restoring Dignity and reviving hope – a community project helping to tackle poverty and exclusion in Southwark 

The Foodbank has been operating for just over a year now, and we were delighted to mark this occasion with a celebratory official launch and first year celebration event on 17 February 2011 at All Saints Church, Blenheim Grove, Peckham.

Over the past year since the foodbank was created free emergency food and greatly needed help has been given to over 1230 people who are in all kinds of crisis situations in the Southwark area. Anyone from the community experiencing a crisis with the direct impact of not being able to feed themselves and their families, can get help with food and sometimes referred for additional support. The foodbank has had an astonishing impact.

To celebrate the project we were joined by the Deputy Major of Southwark Cllr Lorraine Lauder MBE, Annie Shepperd the Chief Executive of Southwark Council, local churches, other London Foodbanks, and officials from The Trussel Trust – the national network of over 80 foodbanks nationwide that Peckham foodbank is linked to. 

Hunger is not just a third world problem. Today people across the UK will struggle to feed themselves and their families. Every day people in the UK go hungry due to redundancy, illness, benefit delay, domestic violence, debt, family breakdown and unexpected bills on a low income – these are just some of the reasons why people go hungry.

London families currently hit the hardest by the recession are receiving emergency food from the growing number of foodbanks located around the city. The need for emergency food relief is very real and foodbanks are helping to address this need. Foodbanks are helping to transform the lives of London’s hidden hungry as advice is given alongside the emergency food relief to help address longer-term issues and problems.

The Trussell Trust Director has said: ‘We don’t expect significant numbers of people to go hungry in the UK today, but the sad truth is that tonight parents across London will be forced to send their children to bed hungry. The need is very real. A seemingly small crisis like a delay in benefits can mean making a choice between buying food or paying bills.  Foodbanks plug the gap whilst a long term solution is found, providing emergency food that stops crisis spiralling into disaster. Recession saw many people who never thought that they would struggle to eat turn to foodbanks for help.’

A Foodbank is a store of non-perishable tinned, dried and canned food items that have all been donated by the public to provide free food when people face crisis situations. Donations come from individuals and local churches, so that we can provide individuals and families with packages of three days of food, which is the period assessed as the minimum time it takes for statutory services to respond to an emergency application.

A referral system gives eligible individuals and families a voucher to receive food from us. Clients receive a voucher which they can exchange for food at The Pecan Peckham Foodbank. We are constantly seeking to establish other voucher distributors so as to reach more people in need. If you are aware of support services that may be well positioned to be a voucher distributor i.e. churches, groups or organisations making regular contact with those potentially in crisis, please do contact us.

At the foodbank a trained local church volunteer welcomes individuals and offers the opportunity to talk and be signposted onto other relevant services to help tackle any longer term issues as well as their immediate crisis.

The project encourages the support of local businesses, charitable trusts, schools, groups, churches and individuals to develop and maintain the foodbank. The foodbank is therefore a low cost project; the food is donated by partners, Pecan provides the premises, and the project is run by volunteers.

Please consider supporting us by collecting and donating food or partnering with us. You could consider purchasing a few extra items on your next supermarket visit and donating them, organising a collection of items from a group of people (please call before dropping them off) or volunteering to help on the foodbank open days.

It was marvellous to celebrate a wonderful community project that’s having a real impact in peoples’ lives!

Further Information and RSVP: 0207732 0007 or elizabeth.longstaff@pecan.org.uk

We hope you like our new website. We’ve redesigned it to place more emphasis on the projects we are running, the impact our work is having and news from across the organisation.

There are plenty of ways that you can get involved today – by praying, donating, volunteering or signing up to our newsletter.

You can start by letting us know what you think of the redesign – by adding a comment below.

In our new film, Deputy Director Steve introduces you to three individuals who have seen Pecan’s life-changing impact.

If you want to show the video in your church – you can download it here.

Let us know what you think with a comment below.

It was a cause for celebration as we marked 21 years of transforming lives predominately through supporting unemployed individuals into work. To commemorate the occasion we held an evening event on 10^th November at All Saints Church in Peckham, South London.

The evening highlighted stories from a few of the people who have benefited from our work over the years. Two such young people Alfie McMahan, 16 and Alfala Syl-Turay, 17 came to us from very different parts of the world but with stories that are all too familiar.

Before our support both teenagers were at high risk of not reaching their full potential. Alfie shared that his lack of confidence was a huge barrier to his educational progress. Alfala told how he struggled to access mainstream education having emigrated from Sierra Leone after his mother died.

Alfie and Alfala were supported and encouraged to develop their skills and confidence; they are both now successfully engaged in full-time college courses.

For their hard work and achievements whilst attending our youth programme, both Alfie and Alfala have been awarded the Jack Petchey Achievement Award which were presented at the 21st Annual Celebration.

These two young men are just two of 27,000 people we have supported since 1989. Pecan – Peckham Evangelical Churches Action Network – was created by local churches working together to address unemployment and other needs in Peckham.

Alongside guiding young people back into training or work, we support asylum seekers, those struggling with mental health issues and ex-offenders into employment.

At the 21^st celebration we were joined by Simon Hughes MP for Southwark and Old Bermondsey and deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats. In his address Simon Hughes commended us for demonstrating how churches can effectively work together to practically support individuals and families which brings huge long-term benefits to the communities in which they are a part of.

Simon Hughes said ‘Turning 21 is a significant milestone, representing entry into adult life. In the same way, Pecan’s 21st anniversary represents a turning point; the charity has come of age and it has plenty more years ahead.’

Although there is much to celebrate after 21 years, we face difficult times ahead with cuts to our funding. We will however continue to provide services that will seek to meet the needs of Peckham in the coming years. Our long term success is due to the many dedicated staff and volunteers who never stop believing in the people they support. They have worked tirelessly to empower individuals to return to work and to reach their full potential.