Church Urban Fund is a national charity working with local leaders, churches and other faith groups all over England. Its local partners are committed to serving and strengthening the community where they live.

Origins

CUF was set up by the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

in 1987 designed to assist in deprived and impoverished areas of the country. Operating in partnership with faith organisations working at the local level, the charity aims to provide a range of support to help these groups to serve their communities. Church Urban Fund was one of the legacies of the " Faith in the City" report, produced by the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

’s Commission on Urban Priority Areas in 1985.

Evolution

Church Urban Fund went through a period of significant change between 2012 and 2015. The organisation moved from being primarily a grant giving organisation into being a development agency that is working through the Church of England's diocesan network to offer support to local communities through the Together Network.

Timeline

*1985 ‘ Faith in the City’ report produced, highlighting the social turmoil existing in many of England's cities. *1987 The Church Urban Fund launched by the Church of England as a response to ‘ Faith in the City’ with the aim of supporting local projects tackling poverty in England's poorest communities. It was envisaged that CUF would have a 20-year life span. *1988 A national campaign launched to raise £18 million from Church members. *1990 £3.2 million was awarded to projects in England's inner cities and outer housing estates during the year. *1991 Over £18 million had been raised by the national campaign since 1987. *1996 By the end of 1996, the Fund had awarded over £25 million to over 1,180 projects. *1998 The CUF celebrated its 10th anniversary. Two thousand people from CUF supported projects attended a day of music, seminars and prayer in

Coventry Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Michael, commonly known as Coventry Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry within the Church of England. The cathedral is located in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midla ...

. *1998 CUF's Development Programme was established to work with partners outside the Church and to build practical and strategic alliances within church structures at all levels. *2000 and 2002 Debates at

Synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

affirmed the Church's commitment to ministry alongside the poor and marginalised. *2003-2004 Extensive consultation at various levels across the

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, prov ...

s with the Urban Bishop's Panel, Synod members, the public and voluntary sectors, to assess the need for continuing CUF and how the organisation should change to be more effective within its contemporary context. *2005 Debate at Synod commended the CUF and backed its continuation. In 2005 CUF had invested more than £55 million in over 4,400 local faith based projects in the poorest areas of England. *2006 The Fundraising Campaign due in 2006 to allow CUF to continue to allocate over £3 million each year to projects addressing the needs of disadvantaged communities across England *2011 Near Neighbours programme starts work through CUF that brings together people in diverse communities. It is a partnership between CUF and the Archbishops' Council, funded by the Department for Communities and Local Government *2012-2015 CUF goes under a period of restructuring that sees the organisation move from being primarily a grants fund to being a development agency that is working in local areas to strengthen communities. *2016 CUF adopts a new look with bright orange, red, and yellow colours dominating the way CUF looks. This reflects the new style of work CUF adopted between 2012 and 2015 *2016 CUF takes on the work of the Just Finance Foundation after the successful trial period set up by the Archbishop of Canterbury{{citation needed, date=June 2020

References

1987 establishments in England Church of England missionary work Organizations established in 1987