New Developments at Changing Attitude

28 October 2002

Major Grants Awarded

On 12 August 2002 Changing Attitude was awarded a grant of £186,793 by the National Lottery Community Fund. A further two grants have since been awarded. Comic Relief have granted the project £40,132 to employ a half-time Office Manager for three years. The Northern Rock Foundation have awarded us £35,000 to hold six Conferences and launch six diocesan groups in the Northern Province in the next three years.

The New Project

The aim of the project is to develop the skills, confidence and resources of lesbian, gay and bisexual Anglicans for them to become advocates for the wider lesbigay community and enable them to communicate effectively with the Church hierarchy. The overall aim is to enable lesbigays to overcome the prejudice and disadvantage they suffer within the Church and to allow them to be more open about themselves without fear of being excluded.

National Resource Centre to be established

The grants will fund the establishment of a National Resource Centre which will gather up to date information on the position of lesbigays in the Church of England, train and support regional volunteers, develop networks, raise awareness of problems, share best practice and develop the website.

Network of Diocesan Groups to be expanded

The three year grant will provide the resources to develop a network of Diocesan Groups throughout England, adding to the eight groups established in the pilot phase. The groups will provide local support for individual and often isolated lesbian, gay and bisexual Christians as well as resources for education and training in each diocese.

Changing Attitude groups already meet in the Dioceses of Birmingham, Bristol, Canterbury, Chelmsford, Chester, Liverpool, London, Oxford, St Albans and Southwark. 

In 2003, new groups are planned in the dioceses of Guildford, Manchester and Newcastle.

New staff appointed

The Reverend Colin Coward, until recently the Co-ordinator of Changing Attitude, has been appointed Director of the new project. The Reverend Sally Rogers has been appointed as the new Development Worker. The post of Office Manager is being advertised at present, and the new person should be in post by March 2003.