Out on Patrol in Ealing with the Street Pastors

Rory Thomas Butler finds out more about this unique initiative

I recently spent an evening with a unique group of volunteers in my borough, called Street Pastors. This intriguing little community had recently piqued my interest, and I was keen to know more. I had noticed the distinctive heavy blue jackets and caps, making them appear like officials of some kind, and because they seemed always to be out at night, and especially on the weekends, in the streets in all weathers engaging with total strangers. I became curious about those involved and what Street Pastors did. Ann Clifford, a team leader for Ealing Street Pastors, invited me to join them ‘on patrol’ so I could see them in action.

We met on a very cold crisp Friday night in March, at Ealing Green Church. The sky was unusually clear and there was a cruel breeze whipping up the streets. Just before 10pm, Ann greeted me outside and brought me in from the cold. The church had recently been refurbished, and instead of traditional stone was now finished in contemporary polished wooden surfaces and fresh white walls as clean as paper. Before the others arrived, Anne talked to me about Street Pastors, its origins, its members and its purpose.

Street Pastors began in the UK in 2003, and was pioneered in Brixton by a man named Les Isaac. Their purpose: “to play an active part in strengthening community life and working for safer streets” , and as Ann explained, ‘to listen, to care, to help’. According to their website, Street Pastors has grown to over 11,000 trained Pastors in 270 towns and cities across the country. The initiative by Ascension Trust, a Christian inter-denominational organisation, mobilizes members of the Church to go out in the community, with a focus on the ‘vulnerable and the disadvantaged’. The charity provide training in community and social issues, mental health, alcoholism, Health and Safety training, and First Aid. Ann says that faith plays a central role in their work, and the majority of Pastors in Ealing tend to be older people.

Anne, 64, an author from West Ealing, became a Pastor seven years ago, but her faith began at 19. She says she ‘loves being part of a hugely multicultural organisation’ and that her call to become a Pastor is rooted in her faith: “I love God and believe God loves and cares about people. Doing this is an expression of his love, and my faith.” Adding: “Jesus’s message to love your neighbour as yourself is certainly central to what we practice.” She reports that although Street Pastors are a Christian charity formed predominantly by members of the Church, they are not a proselytising group, and do not discuss their faith with the public unless invited to. Instead, she says all Pastors believe deeply in the power of prayer, whether privately or openly, prayer is a very meaningful aspect in the life of Pastors, and during a patrol. The Pastors work closely with the police, local council, CCTV services, and local businesses to provide a reassuring presence on the streets. They rely largely on donations, but provide flip-flops and lollipops to people on a night out, from their own pocket. “It’s a great icebreaker, the lollipop - so disarming. And if a young lady is walking home without shoes, we give her flip-flops” says Ann.

At 10:30pm, the other Pastors arrive: Simone, David and Esmin. David works in finance and lives in Teddington, Simone is a university administrator from Hounslow, and Esmin a midwife, also from Hounslow. Before we leave, Ann calls fellow Pastor Rachel, who prays for the patrol via speakerphone. She prays for our safety and success, and gives thanks to God.

The patrol blessed, we departed at 11pm, the Pastors wearing the signature blue overcoats and hats, flip-flops and sweets at the ready. Not a hundred yards from the church a woman of about 20 approaches, saying: “I didn’t know we had those (Pastors) here. That’s made my night!” The group continue at a slow measured pace greeting people out for the night warmly with a ‘good evening’. At each nightspot, Ann stops to chat briefly with security. They seem so familiar and pleased to see one another, each in their own way providing a degree of protection to the public. In the Broadway Shopping Centre, Ann told me that people sometimes shelter here, including the homeless, and she likes to check on them. Under a clear night such as this, the quadrant feel especially bitter. Ann carries a radio given to the Pastors by Ealing Bid, and she can talk with CCTV operators at the Town Hall to mark their location, or summon emergency services. All clear, we proceed, with Esmin dutifully ridding the streets of glass bottles as we go. This small service is part of the patrol, as bottles might be used as weapons in drunken disputes, also making the pavement a safer and cleaner place to walk, and their efforts have been noted by local police. Many seem intrigued by the Pastors, even pleased by their presence, and will stop to talk with the group discussing and praising their work. Ann seems even familiar with one or two people we encounter, embracing and laughing with them. As the patrol moves through the Friday night revelry, I ask Simone why she does this: “It’s a way to give back to the community. My faith is important, coupled with a sense of duty to promote self-control. I am grateful to be here as a caring hand. I look forward to patrols.” The group also patrol Southall, West Ealing and Acton.

We stop into Ealing Broadway Station briefly where Simone tells me: “We are just making sure people get home safely.” At a Select Express store on Haven Green, Ann calls in to talk with employee Saj who has known the Pastors for four years: “They are a good thing to have around. I do worry about them, but I think they are a good deterrent (of bad behaviour) to the public.” The Pastors follow a specific route on each patrol taking them through the main areas of ‘night-time economy’ and public spaces. The reception from the public in general is one of respect, it seems, and many stop to encourage the group. David reports that he feels safe and the reception from people is ‘generally positive’. Though Ann recalls one incident involving a knife almost two years ago, but the police were summoned and no one was harmed.

In Haven Green, a park surrounded by busy traffic opposite Ealing Broadway, I ask why prayer is so important. Anne says: “It’s really central…it’s a prayer walk. Years ago, I wasn’t a Christian, but I was looking for something. I prayed and said, ‘if you’re there God, I would like to know you’, and immediately something changed in me.” David adding: “Faith motivates me and I believe in the power of prayer.” The group say they pray constantly while on patrol, and it is their belief that prayer is a way to speak to God and for Him to speak to your heart.

At 1am, we part ways, but the night is not over for the Pastors: patrols go on for as long as they must, and Ann reports getting to bed sometimes at 4am. Before we say goodbye, the group offer to pray for me, and although I am not a practicing religious person I felt slightly flattered, so I accepted.

From my observations, it would seem the Street Pastors mean only to do good in society, and appear to have no desire to proselytise, or impose doctrine. In taking to the streets at night, and at times in potentially unsafe situations they often take many risks, yet put aside any reservations they may have to look after potentially vulnerable and desperate people, out of sheer good will. Their apparent sense of duty to their fellow creature appears to come from a place of genuine concern and love, and their faith only seems to strengthen their resolve. The Street Pastor initiative seems to provide a direction in life rooted in a strong sense of community and fellowship, to these largely anonymous individuals.

Rory Thomas Butler

March 30, 2017