THAT there has been much achieved over 150 years is not in doubt. The history and impact of the work of the Church of Scotland in this area has been well documented, in various forms, throughout the year. The January edition of Life and Work 2019 gave a full synopsis of progress from 1869 to the present day, highlighting the inception of organised social care in the Church as a response to the rapidly growing poverty in Victorian Scotland. A Christ led response to the need of the times.
The 150th anniversary exhibition has been well visited as it has travelled to various locations across Scotland and it was great to make it a feature of the Edinburgh Festival. It tells the story of an organisation grounded in faith, central to the mission of the Church of Scotland and responding to the needs of the communities which it serves to make a real and lasting difference to the lives of so many. We have been delighted at the feedback from this exhibition as we have from the many other events which have taken place during this year. The services have all been encouraged to mark the occasion in the way that best suits them, and there have been some fabulous Victorian themed extravaganzas as well as much more modest offerings. The staff celebration, held at the Palace of Holyroodhouse was a wonderful occasion, and it was a real privilege to be able to recognise the value of their work in that way. What the 150 year story illustrates beautifully, however, is that we are as active today as we have ever been. CrossReach remains one of the largest voluntary sector providers of social care services in Scotland.
Thousands of people, every year, experience God’s love for them through the support we deliver as they tackle personal circumstances which bring particular challenge. The nature of the work has changed as we have moved out of traditional models of institutional care and have become much more active in local communities with a presence from Shetland to Kirkcudbright and Stornoway to Prestonpans. We are widely recognised for our quality and diversity, and our services complement the incredibly valuable work done in so many congregations and communities, offering additional more formal support where local resources are unable to meet the immediate needs of the person before them.