A visit from the Bishop of Derby to a city centre church has proved an inspiration for drop-in centre users and volunteers.
WHATEVER ideas you have of what a Christian church is, take them out of your mind and then walk into St Peter's Church in Derby city centre.
The traditional values are still in place but are updated with a modern and new way of communicating with the public.
Nobody is in denial that the numbers for traditional congregations are decreasing.
But St Peter's has found new ways of communicating with a section of the population that would never usually embrace themselves in the surroundings of a church.
The Bishop of Derby, the Rt Rev Dr Alastair Redfern, was visiting the church on Wednesday to see the work being done by the drop-in centre for asylum seekers and refugees.
The clinic, run by the Red Cross, offers support to people who feel isolated on coming to Derby for the first time.
The Bishop's visit is in response to the Archbishop of Canterbury's invitation to Christians to come together to pray and to support Christian social action over the Easter period.
After visiting the drop-in centre, the Bishop talked to people who run the Business Innovation Centre, which has been created to help ethical start-up businesses.
He said that the projects were great examples of Christian work being done, even for those who might not believe in the religion.
Bishop Alastair said: "The great thing about the church is we deal with people in need. People in need of advice and people in need on the front line in the business innovation centre here at St Peter's.
"We are not just about solving problems, we want to work at solutions as well. We work at both ends of the spectrum and also in between.
"Our business innovation centre is only one of two in the country and is a great resource for people to use to get a job and start up a business. It is a model for other churches and is a great platform for volunteers. The debt advice the church offers is also very valuable to those who need it.
"The situations here are very complicated and we have to help them short term."
Bishop Alastair acknowledged that the immigration centre was a place where you would hear stories of great difficulty but said that, with the church's help, things could improve.
He said: "It is not up to us to make the law or break it.
"You can still give good advice and support within the legal framework.
"We are here for them because we are fellow human beings and it's about being good neighbours."
Bishop Alastair said the work with the immigration centre was part of a journey of taking people from low points in their life and transforming them into a positive.
He said: "It's about creating a good news story.
"When I come to events like this, it is a big measure of seeing how things are happening for the better.
"I value this opportunity to meet with those struggling with issues of asylum and being refugees, and with those trying to help them."
The Bishop also took time to visit the Business Innovation Centre which was launched in February.
The centre, which is run by Rich Tyler at the church, helps people to aspire to their business dreams by providing office space, meeting facilities and an expert mentoring service for start-up businesses.
Bishop Alastair met the four tenants at the centre who are using the service.
They are wedding and entertainment specialists GC Events; the Me and Dee charity, which offers seaside breaks to people with life limiting conditions; Polar Energy Grants, a cavity and loft insulation specialist; and Favourss, a website which provides a free global internet site for swapping favours.
Maria Hanson, founder and managing director of Me and Dee, said she was impressed with the Bishop's visit.
She said: "It was lovely and it was really good to have his presence and share lunch with him.
"The church has been very supportive and the day itself was very interesting."
And Rich said that the Bishop's visit had inspired him to make the centre more of a success.
Rich is taking on some of the mentoring at the centre and uses his own experience – after transforming his career from working in a newsagents.
The 48-year-old worked at Tyler's News, Borrowash, and in IT before becoming a full-time stock trader last year, working in New York remotely from his home in Aston-on-Trent.
He said: "The Bishop said he was really impressed with the progress we have made here.
"He looked at how we work and support each other and he was really upbeat about the framework.
"We have now got four people on board and one more person about to rent, which is positive.
"We have exceeded our expectations to be at this point and the important thing is all the businesses are ethical.
"The businesses we have on board are a good mix and a good bunch of folk."
The Bishop gave Rich words of wisdom which he said would inspire the centre to move forward.
Rich said: "It was good for everyone to have the Bishop visit us.
"He has raised my aspirations for the centre and improved everybody's confidence and motivation.
"For him to take the time and trouble to visit us is impressive."
During the Bishop's visit at the church, he and Canon Paul Morris, of St Peter's, handed out Easter eggs that have been donated by people who work with St Peter's.
The Rev Anita Matthews, of St Peter's, said 180 eggs had been donated so far.
She said: "We really want people to help us put smiles on youngsters' faces by donating eggs to the underprivileged children in the area.
"It would be a really big help. The eggs will be going to the Sure Start Children's Centre and the Roma Community Care.
"They are very worthy projects and we would love to help them as best we can."
