Local Mission

 As a Baptist Church, we are committed to mission at home and abroad and believe that we should share God’s love to the community around us. We are building close relationships with several mission organisations based nearby, in the UK and in different parts of the world, supporting their ministries and raising funds to support projects. As a church we aim to give 10% of our income to their work.

We support five local charities ...

Dorchester Family Support

Formerly known as the Holiday Lunch Club, this initiative has a new name – Dorchester Family Support – and is now a registered charity (charity no. 1188567). The original idea was to support families which during term time received help with school meals but lost that vital support during school holidays. However, from small beginnings its activities grew. Over the 2020 summer holidays 188 families covering over 300 children registered for a food pack.

The children attend a variety of schools – The Thomas Hardye School (senior), St Osmund’s, Dorchester Middle and St Mary’s Puddletown (all middle) and Damers, Frome Valley, St Mary’s Charminster and Manor Park (first schools). DFS originally ran from the Dorford Centre but now operates from The Thomas Hardye School.

You can find more details on the charity’s Facebook page.

Dorchester’s Foodbank
Dorchester’s Foodbank was set up 10 years ago to help those struggling financially and who are unable to feed themselves or their family. Each of the food parcels contains enough non-perishable tinned and dried food to provide sufficient nutrition for individuals and families for at least three-days of healthy, balanced meals. A wide range of personal hygiene and household products are also available.

Foodbank works closely with professionals such as social workers, health visitors, schools and Citizens Advice so that anyone in crisis has access to a food parcel and other support. It is run from the church’s building at the Dorford Centre, Bridport Road, Dorchester, DT1 1RR (opposite the Top O' Town car park) on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

More information including contact details can be found here - Food Bank page

Fleet Camps

Fleet Camps is an independently run Christian CIO (charity no. 1180051), supported by DBC, which holds camps in the Summer holidays and has done so for the past 30 years. These camps are open to children of all backgrounds and faiths, although they are run by Christians and aim to teach about the Christian faith. In a typical year, it holds three week-long camps for children and young people each summer at Fleet, Weymouth, Dorset, and follow-up activities in the Dorset area during the year. These camps cover younger children in school years 3 to 6, older children in years 6 to 9 and a youth camp for those in years 10 to 13. However, in 2020 the leaders ran the first Virtual Fleet Camps!

Hopefully in 2021 there will be lots of fun activities at camp, including craft, sports, performing arts and others in the mornings with an off-site trip most afternoons. In the evenings there is a fun blend of games, music and teaching followed by a night activity before bedtime. The best part is spending a whole week with friends under canvas!

You can find more information at this website – www.fleetcamps.org.uk

People First Dorset
People First Dorset empowers people with learning disabilities to be independent, have their voices heard and be included in community life. For people with learning disabilities, it changes lives by tackling loneliness and social isolation. It also challenges discrimination, helps improve health and wellbeing and enables people to speak up and be heard.

Projects run by People First Dorset – such as Friendship Club, Speaking Up, Action Groups, Quality Checkers and Easy Read – aim to empower people with learning disabilities to make and maintain friendships while connecting with their community. They then develop their communication and speaking up skills so that they become more independent and confident. There are 1.5 million people with a learning disability in the UK. People First Dorset estimates that around 10,000 people have learning disabilities in Dorset, of whom it already supports 400.

It is a charitable company (charity no. 1106963), first formed in 2004. Find out more by going to its website – www.peoplefirstdorset.org.uk

Safe Families

Started in 2012, Safe Families is a charity that works with roughly 50 local authorities and other agencies around the UK. It offers hope, belonging and support to children, families and care leavers; we do this primarily, but not exclusively, with and through local churches. In 2023-24 it celebrated 5,462 volunteers who gave of their time, 1,430 churches who partnered with it and 1,448 families who were connected into community; feeling seen, heard and understood; perhaps for the first time. The charity has a team of 160+ staff working all over the UK to connect trained and supported volunteers with families who need relationship and connection.

Safe Families for Children UK is a registered charity in England and Wales No. 1150405 whose head office is in Newcastle upon Tyne. You can find out more here – www.safefamilies.uk 

We believe that mission and ministries should not be contained just locally. We also support vitally important national and international work.

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