The team had a fantastic day on Saturday walking 30km from Ely to Cambridge to celebrate 30 years of Christians Against Poverty! Poverty is so much more than going without. Poverty destroys lives. It robs people of joy, hope, and opportunities. It tears families apart, isolates those most in need of support, and leads many to believe there is no way out. CAP has been committed to seeing transformed lives, thriving churches and an end to UK poverty since 1996. Every day, local

Our society, especially to those who live on the edges, can be a society of division and difference, supporting those who have and trapping those who do not in a spiral of poverty that is hard to escape. Whichever political party is in power puts into place different forms of support, but it takes this and more to make a real difference in the life of someone struggling with poverty and debt and there are so many organisations and charities, including CAP, that work together

Many of our Ely and District CAP clients are going through difficult times, both as part of or alongside the struggle with poverty and debt. Our team of debt coaches and befrienders try to help with these wider issues, signposting to other organisations that may be able to help with health or addiction support, helping with income maximisation or coming alongside at a court hearing. The CAP support hub in Bradford also help with enhanced support for those with additional need

The weather this week has certainly moved from the last warmth of summer into autumn and this is a traditional time to gather in the last of the harvest and prepare for the winter ahead. For our Ely and District CAP clients and others like them suffering with poverty and debt, it is a time to look ahead and worry about where the money will come from to heat the house. Energy costs have risen a further 17% this year, and probably by more early next year, pushing up the near 1

Many Christian values are inherent in our society and culture, most people believe in good and bad, that we should tell the truth and share and treat others fairly. But when we see national institutions, businesses and football clubs bend and break the rules these can be hard to swallow. It is human nature to tell the white lie to disguise a mistake, to ignore a problem and hope it will go away, to not say sorry as we can't see what we did wrong. And this can just cause probl

When things don't go to plan it can be frustrating - we have been waiting for the final pieces to finalise a house move and still don't know if it will make the move date so we may need to shift everything around. This feels frustrating at the time but when we step back and get a bit of perspective we can see how lucky we are to be in the position to be able to choose to move and choose where we want to be and when we do move in I'm sure that it will be lovely! This is a situ

Waiting for something can be frustrating, especially when it is something as life changing as the journey out of debt. For Ely and District CAP clients calling for help now, first visit appointments are having to wait into November and December. For those already on their CAP journey, there are waiting times at each stage of the journey - the busy time of finding paperwork that you may have hidden from yourselves and the hard truths that this can reveal, the time when the cas

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the supporter lunch on Wednesday, we had a lovely time catching up, praying together, hearing an update on the debt centre and exploring how we can be more invitational. John started the meal with a look at the Parable of the Great Banquet. Luke 14: 12 - 23 (NIV) 12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, th

For many of our Ely and District CAP clients, the journey out of debt can seem like a long and difficult process, first visit clients are now booking into November so face a long wait to even start the process, others are waiting a long time after their second information gathering visit for their advice and still others are waiting on the progress of Debt Relief Orders or Bankruptcies to become debt free. Struggling with debt can be a dark time, reaching out for help can be

The summer holidays are often seen as a time for a break, to have a holiday, a change of scene, relax and refresh before going back to school or work. It is also a time to spend with family, celebrate and spend quality time together. It can be a time to take stock and reflect on where we are and where we want to be. For our Ely and District CAP clients, it can be a struggle, finding activities to entertain the children, feeling unable to enjoy a holiday like other families, s

One of the things that sets Christians Against Poverty apart from other debt help organisations is that this mission is God inspired - prompted by the care of Jesus for the poor and suffering to aid those living with the burden of poverty and debt through practical debt and financial help and alongside that with a mission to bring the Good News of Jesus into their lives through love, care and support for the whole of life's journey. The knowledge of the love of God in our liv

With the land looking so parched and dry, drought, hosepipe bans, wild fires and worries about food shortages, this reading from Isaiah seemed particularly apt: Isiah 58:10 - 11 (NIV) 10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. 11 The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will str

How we define who we are, our identity, is built on many factors; upbringing, social class, nationality, job, lifestyle and many more. For many like our Ely and District CAP clients, the struggle with poverty and debt can undermine confidence in who we are with supports being knocked away; relationship breakdown, job loss, ill health. For some it can become so bad that they feel unable to leave the house, unable to face life, unable to keep going. Knowing Jesus in our lives h

For many of our Ely and District CAP clients, facing their debts in the second paperwork gathering visit can be daunting. They have realised that they have a problem and have reached out to CAP for help, they have had the first visit and been reassured by the team that they are with them and will walk beside them every step of the way. But for many, they have hidden the full extent of their debt problems even from themselves and facing this in black and white, what their debt

Sometimes our efforts can seem futile, that we have worked so hard but have seen no results, to become disheartened, lose confidence, to feel a failure in the face of earthly power that seems to be working against us. Elijah, a man who had dedicated his life to the work of God, had just such a moment when his work resulted in persecution. 1 Kings 19: 11 - 18 (NIV) 11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by

For many of our Ely and District CAP clients getting into debt is just a part of a downward spiral. Imagine that having to give up work due to stress and poor mental health puts pressure on already stretched finances, increasing that stress. Then it becomes a struggle to pay the bills and these begin to spiral with late payments starting to roll over and less income to pay back the overdue payments. You may try to pay off some, to prioritse which seem more important, but anot

Half way through the year is a good time to take stock and see how the work of the Ely and District CAP Debt Centre is developing, with a report from John giving a flavour of where we are: "Compared to March, the tables below give a picture of where clients are in their debt journeys and the number of appointments being carried out by the team. Following training, we are now focussed on the implementation of our new DHP (debt help platform / salesforce) system. As with any ne

John, Pat, Kim and I braved the red alert heatwave warning to attend the annual regional CAP United conference in Northampton on Wednesday. Due to the hot temperatures, some of the programme had to be cut but it was still inspiring to worship together with Debt Coaches, Money Coaches, Job Club Managers, Life Skills Coaches, Church Leaders, Befrienders, Support staff and many more from across the Midlands and East region. Talks from CAP founder John Kirkby and CEO Stewart McCu

Standing firm in faith can be hard to do in our society which values worth in terms of money and possessions, which phone you have, which car you have, whether you have a nice job and a nice home. And this can be especially hard for those like our CAP clients who feel that they are not part of this mainstream society, but have been left behind in the margins because they do not have these things. But having things, valuing possession and position can be hard for faith as well

As we have been exploring over the last few weeks, the main theme for Christians Against Poverty in 2026 is that we are stronger together. Over the 30 years since CAP was founded by John Kirkby, one of the key values of CAP is partnering with local churches to provide debt support directly to local communities, as well as wider care beyond practical help. Now 967 churches partner with CAP, with over 20,000 people supported by these churches to deliver CAP debt services. Colos