St Peter's House

Everything we do at St Peter’s House is because of who we are and what we believe.
Informed by our Christian faith, we believe that ‘Everything is Connected’ – people,
community, health, spirituality, well-being, the search for understanding…. It all
interweaves.

Everything flourishes when one thing leads to another.

St Peter’s House Board of Trustees Closure Statement

 

 

St Peter’s House Chaplaincy has been a vibrant place of community for over fifty years, and in recent years many of you will have come to know and love it for the support and community you find here every day. It is with sadness that the trustees of St Peter’s House now inform you that the charity’s operations are to be wound up over the coming months. There are financial challenges, and the charity’s work can no longer continue. 

 

The organisations that have funded St Peter’s House recognise the ongoing and pressing need for a reimagined Christian chaplaincy, and give their assurance that work is underway to continue this vital offer for the staff and students of Manchester’s universities.

 

 

As our services close in the weeks to come, appropriate support will be put in place for those who currently rely on the services and support offered by St Peter’s House. Over the past fifty years and until the present day, we know that many have come to find a sense of home here and we look forward to marking this time of closure with thanksgiving together. 

All Will Be Well

Underlying our work over the past few years has been a reflection on the words of the medieval mystic known as Julian of Norwich.  Like us, she lived through a time of plague, death and fear – and also experienced a long period of self-isolation, although hers was self-chosen as she withdrew to her Anchorage for a life of reflection on the visions she received near death.

The words, ‘All Will Be Well’ lead us on with hope, but also present challenge and questions.

Faith

We are the Christian chaplaincy team for the Manchester Universities and RNCM, and we’re based at St Peter’s House.

We have a simple but challenging vision: ‘Everything is Connected’. For us, this means that God is at work in all things… It doesn’t really matter what words or language people use to express this, our task is just to journey alongside them as we together explore what this may mean. So what does being the ‘Christian chaplaincy team’ mean?

For us, it means living out the values of our faith in an authentic, gentle and fully inclusive way. We recognise that the values of our faith are not exclusive to us but shared by many of different and no faiths. We seek to live in community and conversation, building an inclusive, vibrant and diverse community of fellow wonderers.

The Team

‘Meet the team at St. Peter’s House, chaplaincy to Manchester’s Universities’

Hannah Skinner

Hannah is the Director of St Peter’s House, and has been here since the organisation’s earliest days. Listening to the hopes and vision of the original Board, Chair and staff team, she coalesced and shaped this into the Chaplaincy that you know today. Taking ‘Everything is Connected’ from some scribbled notes and thoughts into a practicing place of community and service, she has developed and overseen many of our key pieces of work. She is motivated by justice, human flourishing and creating feminist, alternative spaces of work and life. 

Mary
Sharples

Mary is our Chaplaincy Assistant & Engagement Officer, which means that she splits her time between supporting and working alongside our volunteers, running the smooth operations of The Well, and keeping all of our social media bang up-to-date. In her life and work, Mary wants to be part of growing communities where everyone is welcomed, included and celebrated. She moved to Manchester 5 years ago as a student, and loves working and living in this wonderful city so much that she’s stayed!

Chris Collins

Chris is our General Building Manager at St Peters House, alongside overseeing the day to day operations of Milk & Honey Café as café manager. He also works closely with our community of incredible volunteers, from meeting them at introductions and first day training sessions, through to creating rotas and working alongside them in the café.  Chris brings 15 years’ experience in hospitality and charities, and joined team way back when Milk & Honey first opened in 2018

Hayley Lawson

Hayleym, our Team PA is responsible for making everything run smoothly!

She’ll often be the first person you hear from if you get in touch and is often at the front desk waiting to welcome you into SPH.

Ben
Limb

Head Chef Ben’s 15 years’ experience in restaurants combines with his passion for sustainability and nutrition to develop new menus each week for both Milk & Honey café and the community we serve at The Well. All of the decisions he makes around food are balanced by making healthy choices for people and planet – and this is reflected in our ever-changing, seasonal menus. Ben loves working alongside our volunteers, and you’ll usually find him singing-whilst-teaching in the kitchen

Tilly Grossman

Tilly is our assistant chef and newest addition to the kitchen team at Milk & Honey Café. She’s a total foodie and ‘ oss of Food Waste’, making her a fitting addition to the kitchen team – she can turn any combination of ‘reject’ veggies into a top vegan meal! She’s fired up by sustainability, seasonal eating and reducing waste, and combines this with her love for hospitality and cooking great food for those affected by food injustice here in Manchester best

Ngwafu Tansie

Ngwafu is our occasional Chef and a huge foodie! Her professional and personal life is full of food – in her studies at University, in her food manufacturing and food product design background, and (when she’s not here at Milk & Honey) in her own food business. She’s all about showcasing vegan food at its best

Governance

St. Peter’s House Chaplaincy CIO (Charity No: 1166935)  is a small charity that works with a broad range of University and Denominational partners.  The partners are represented on a board of trustees which has responsibility for overseeing the charity.   The board ensures that SPH follows best practice and as part of that the following policies have been approved:
 

If you want more details about the charity please contact our chair.

 

All Will Be Well

Today saw our ‘All Will Be Well’ artwork rolled-up and removed from the front of St Peter’s House. It has been strange and sad watching

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Embracing the Unexpected…

St Peter’s House has always been a place of The Unexpected. Unexpected people, unexpected questions, unexpected conversations, unexpected experiences, unexpected news. Some good, some bad.

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