What's happening at the Hub this week?
Stars
Tuesday Tea
Shop Unit
We are busy encouraging members of the circuit and community to make stars for our Christmas campaign! This week Charity met with Dot Smith the CEO of recovery connections & was delighted to hear that their women's craft group that meets at Connections Community Cafe would love to make some stars for us!
It was also good to catch up wi
We are busy encouraging members of the circuit and community to make stars for our Christmas campaign! This week Charity met with Dot Smith the CEO of recovery connections & was delighted to hear that their women's craft group that meets at Connections Community Cafe would love to make some stars for us!
It was also good to catch up with Dot & hear how we could support the work of Recovery Connections better.
Shop Unit
Tuesday Tea
Shop Unit
We are currently operating out of one of our shop units (132 Linthorpe Road) which has been brilliant and helped us engage more with people in the town centre. This week we met Morbid a local historian, and Mal one of our town centre friends too, we also made a coffee for Chris the mayor, and Stephen the Baptist minister from Coulby
We are currently operating out of one of our shop units (132 Linthorpe Road) which has been brilliant and helped us engage more with people in the town centre. This week we met Morbid a local historian, and Mal one of our town centre friends too, we also made a coffee for Chris the mayor, and Stephen the Baptist minister from Coulby Newham. Bernard one of the members of the circuit leadership team came in for a cuppa too & left with a list of small jobs to make the unit a bit more loved. We also welcomed Revd David & Mark, the circuit safeguarding officer for a coffee & a meeting. We love seeing people. Revd Charity posts on her stories on social media when we are in the shop unit & you're welcome to call in.
Tuesday Tea
Tuesday Tea
Tuesday Tea
We are now open in the shop unit every Tuesday from 7:30am -8:30am where we give out free takeaway teas and coffees to people on their way to work, people who have been outside all night, anyone who needs or wants a brew. On our first Tuesday doing this we engaged with around 20 people including some street homeless. We always welcome helpers/volunteers. Please get in touch for more info.
Pop Up Shop
Tuesday Tea
Tuesday Tea
We are encouraging community organisations to come and use our shop unit for a day or an afternoon to showcase the work they are doing in Middlesbrough.
Middlesbrough Methodist Hub has had a busy summer
The team have been working with Borderlands and Public Health South Tees on an end of life/grief project for communities across Middlesbrough, this has taken a lot of planning and organising but by the time you read this the first two ‘talking spaces’ will have taken place in the café at the Methodist hub. There will be a bigger event at the Town Hall in October so watch this space!
Police Training, we have hosted and delivered training to police officers from across the Cleveland Police force.
Supporting others; we’ve supported individuals and organisations in the town centre who might be struggling or who just need a little extra care often through small acts of kindness
We’ve attended anti-extremism training in Stockton.
We have welcomed and hosted the connexional ‘flourishing in ministry’ officer Corin Pilling and planned his time in Middlesbrough and the Darlington District
We have marked the one year anniversary since the violent riots that broke out in Middlesbrough last year, this was marked by an event in Middlesbrough Town Hall which the team and Revd John attended and at which Revd Charity was one of the
speakers. This period of time has involved lots of preparation, working with other
agencies and doing the dreaded radio interviews!
Riot-recovery work is ongoing in Middlesbrough and plays a big part in the networks and relationships that we have built.
We had a break from Pub Theology over August but prior to that had some great meetings together. Pub theology is meant to act not just as a space for deep ‘God-talk’ but also as a very public presence of the Church in the marketplace.
These are just a handful of things that have been going on in the town centre, if you want to get involved please get in touch. We meet weekly to pray together, on other days we walk around the town centre, take people for coffee’s, attend meetings, run events. This is your project in the town centre and we would love to show you round
the town some time and introduce you to some of the people and places we love.
Middlesbrough Methodist Hub
What will you do with this life you have been gifted?
Our church was founded in 1980 by a group of dedicated Christians who wanted to create a welcoming space for all people. Since then, we have grown into a vibrant community that serves our members and our city.
“Live the life you are gifted”.
This simply means whatever our circumstances, our limitations, our hopes, our struggles – God gifts us a life and its worth truly living it. The gift of life is precious and valuable. This means that those of us who call ourselves people of faith in our loving of people, want to help and inspire others to live the life they are gifted. This is what “loving your neighbour” means.
We think we do this best by being/doing three things.
- The first is to live intentionally disciple-shaped lives, committing ourselves to talking with God, studying scripture, & walking alongside each other.
- The second is to offer physical, mental and spiritual hospitality to everyone we encounter, by loving our neighbour.
- The third is to remain authentic, always being our real selves difficult parts and all – no ‘candyfloss Christianity’ here! Its real, messy and it can be hard.
We believe that everyone in the town centre of Middlesbrough is worthy of the opportunity to ‘live the life they are gifted’ and we are committed to finding ways of enabling that. We are trying to live the lives we are gifted and to help others do the same through Middlesbrough Methodist Hub..
Middlesbrough Methodist Hub (formally known as Linthorpe Road Methodist Church & Resource Centre) is the circuit’s physical form of presence and act of hospitality in the town centre of Middlesbrough. The building itself is home to a number of organisations and groups all of which serve the Middlesbrough and Teesside communities. There’s always room for more whether it’s a one of event or a regular space.
The Hub has a part time administrator Andrew who can be contacted below.
Middlesbrough Methodist Hub administrator: Andrew Glazebrook
email mbromethodisthub@gmail.com tel: 01642 225396
(Working days: Monday 9-12; Tuesday 9-12; Thursday 9-12; Friday 9-12)
The Mission Project
There is a small but growing mission project based out of the Hub, this work is overseen by Revd Charity. There is a team of volunteers who are living intentionally disciple-shaped lives and holding each other accountable whilst exploring ways to offer hope-filled hospitality to the town centre community. There’s always room for more. Contact Revd Charity below if you feel like you might want a conversation about deepening your discipleship and offering some energy to the project.
Alongside this Revd Charity also offers a form of chaplaincy to those who inhabit the town centre, whether that be shop workers, hospitality workers, shoppers, students, those with addiction & mental health problems, civic leaders & council workers, homeless friends. She’s available to ANYONE who is in the town centre and is happy to meet up and talk about any support that we can offer, especially if it involves a brew in one of the fabulous independent cafes that ‘Boro has to offer.
The Team
Dawn has been a church steward, circuit steward and district synod rep. Her faith journey began as a small child hearing the teacher say she was a bit strange always choosing bible stories to read! Her journey from curiosity to faith has been a long and winding one, joining a church in 1991 she will say that she has maintained the ‘bit strange’ label! For Dawn it has been a bumpy road at times but worth the journey. Dawn brings experience of faith both ‘inside’ and ‘outside’ the church, work with families and children and an ability to accept people where they are at.
Lee was baptised in 2021, as someone on a journey as a F2M trans person, baptism was so important to him to declare his love for God as the person he believes he is called to be. Lee will tell you his journey has been far from straightforward lots of ups and downs and often feeling far from God but Lee is committing himself again to knowing more of God and sharing that God who loves him. Lee brings with him a humble honesty which rings true for most of us, life isn’t always easy but God offers us the chance of new beginnings every single day
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Andrew a lifelong Middlesbrough resident, is currently the administrator for Middlesbrough Methodist Hub and was received into membership at Trinity Methodist church recently. Although he found faith only a few years ago it has given him new friendships and a positive outlook. Andrew hopes that the town centre ministry will spread love and faith to those unaware of its presence. He brings with him numerous administrative and creative skills and is in an ideal position to form a bridge between the groups that meet in the building, the wider community, the mission of the Church and the story of God in Middlesbrough
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Revd Charity was brought up in the Methodist Church but came to faith consciously as a teenager, never quite ‘fitting in’ within the church she went on to establish new forms of church / Church plants in Bristol in the early 2000’s, was involved in FX, pioneering, emerging church and alt. worship. Charity just wants to create a space where anyone and everyone can know they are welcome and can come to know the love that God has for them. Charity has worked for the Methodist church for over 20 years and has been a Methodist minister for 15 years. She’s still figuring out what it all means.
The core team are trying to live intentionally disciple-shaped lives and holding each other accountable whilst exploring ways to offer hope-filled hospitality to the town centre community. [If this is something you are interested in please contact Revd Charity to find out more.]
What’s On
Weekly Email
Every week Revd Charity will be sending out a short email with news, information about what’s on and most importantly prayer points. If you’d like to sign up to the weekly email contact Revd Charity (charity.hamilton@methodist.org.uk).
If you’re on social media you can also see what’s on. Facebook search for: Linthorpe Road Methodist Resource Centre. Instagram – follow Revd Charity: @charitykmhamilton
Evening Prayer & Pub-Theology
From Easter Sunday 2025 we will begin to meet in the Hub’s café space every other week (initially) for a short form of evening prayer before wandering to a local pub for some ‘pub-theology’; pub theology is really just about sharing faith with friends and taking church into the local economy. We buy a drink, choose a topic and try and work out where God is in that topic over conversation, laughter and friendship. We are building a community of disciples who are confident asking questions.
Anyone can join in, sit and listen or get stuck into the conversation.
Sunday’s 6pm Middlesbrough Methodist Hub Café Space then onto the pub.
Town Centre Walk-Around
Revd Charity does an intentional town centre walk around a couple of times a week where she chats to people and tells anyone who will listen how fabulous, beautiful and loved they are. It keeps her grounded in the town centre and helps to remind people that they matter. If you want to join her on a ‘walk-around’ get in touch with her.
Team Gatherings
The town centre mission team meet together each week to pray, share scripture, talk through what is happening that week in the town centre whilst drinking tea and eating the occasional biscuit. If you’d like to sit in on a team meeting contact Revd Charity.
Projects
Jesus Rocks: Our team member Lee is taking the lead on this mini-mission-project. You may have seen on social media people painting pebbles and leaving them in random places for folk to pick up, re ‘hide’ or take home. On the back of the pebbles are the details of a Facebook group so that people can photograph the pebble and post it on the group’s page. Lee came up with the idea and name for Jesus Rocks, a version of the painted pebbles where we paint Christian ‘things’ on the pebbles. We plan to use a different theme/ scripture reading/ story/ prayer each week. If you want to paint a pebble you can do this at home and pass them on to us or hide them in the town centre yourself or you can come and paint a pebble with us sometime!
Middlesbrough Methodist Hub & Cleveland Police
Middlesbrough Methodist Hub & Cleveland Police
Middlesbrough Methodist Hub & Cleveland Police
The team down at Middlesbrough Methodist Hub, along with support from members of the circuit have been running monthly sessions for Cleveland Police as part of their Faith Trail Training. The Faith Trail Training takes members of Cleveland Police around to different faith communities in Middlesbrough. Each session we provide is attended by around 15 officers and staff, who learn about what Methodism is, what goes on in Methodist Churches and how they can best interact with Methodist communities. We also spend time thinking about how they might be able to better work with us in the community.
Middlesbrough Methodist Hub & Cleveland Police
Middlesbrough Methodist Hub & Cleveland Police
We usually begin with an active ‘ice-nreaker’ and then hear about Methodism before moving onto some role play and then some case-studies. There is lots of thought provoking conversation as well as lots of laughter - at the last session Revd Charity persuaded Satnam, the EDI officer to dress up as a 97 year oldcharacter!
One of the things that officers have been really grateful for is to hear that they are prayed for by us regularly; that we think of them, remember them and pray for them means a lot.
Middlesbrough Methodist Hub & Cleveland Police
We are really grateful to have these kinds of relationships in Middlesbrough and we are thankful for the help of circuit members who come and make tea and coffee and offer a warm welcome to Cleveland Police. If this is the kind of thing you would like to be involved in email Revd Charity [charity.hamilton@methodist.org.uk].
Get involved!
The ministry we offer in the town centre is on your behalf; If after reading this something is stirring within you and it feels like you want to get involved we are ready for you. There are lots of opportunities to get further involved in the mission and ministry of the town centre. For a role description