Our Cumbria case studies show how much is already happening in the County.  However looking further afield reveals other opportunities.

St John’s, Moggerhanger, Bedfordshire run a village shop in their church.  Support is available from the Village Retail Services Association.

The Village Church for Village Life Award recognises some of the best adaptations of churches to serve the wider community.  See the 2008 shortlist here.

Open All Hours is a report which shares the experienced gained and lessons learned by Rural Churches in Community Services (RCCS) which was set up to distribute Millennium Commission funding to help rural churches to adapt their buildings for wider community use. It describes a number of case studies and can be purchased online e.g. from Amazon

Bringing cinema to local communities

Have you thought of setting up a film society and showing films in your church?
The British Federation of Film Societies Cinema for All is the national agency for the development and support of the film society and community cinema movement in the UK. They offer a wide range of services and resources dedicated to the needs of community cinemas.
They have recently published The Community Cinema Sourcebook which provides inspiration, support and guidance for anyone running or starting up a volunteer-led Community Cinema. Go to http://www.bffs.org.uk/ and http://www.communitycinemas.com/ for guidance.

Credit Unions in churches in Cumbria

A new initiative to increase the number and accessibility of credit unions is underway in Cumbria.  There are many ways your church could help, one of which is to host the credit union in one of your buildings.  Click here for more information and who to contact to get involved.