Using our buildings to make a difference to our communities
#Loving God #Bringing Hope
Buying buildings for church..
Freedom bought a building in 2005 when we were five years old and rennovated it so that it housed our offices, a large meeting room, art studio, an outdoor decking area, and room for all our community projects. We were based in this building on Roseberry Road until June 2011 and sold it in 2016 to help finance the auditorium.
In December 2008 we bought Freedom House. We started rennovating it in December 2010 we moved into Freedom House in June 2011! This building on Lower Bristol Road is now home to our offices, youth rooms, an art studio, and kids rooms which also serve the Trauma Recovery Centre (TRC). We have planning permission for an auditorium to be added to the car park of this building after a process of 6 years because Bath is a world heritage city. The breaking ground is taking place September 2018.
Before we started work on getting planning permission for the auditorium, Betsy and Andrew made a promise that Freedom would give at least a million pounds to the disadvantaged before spending a million on a building. That was achieved by 2014, and we are still giving to many in Bath, across the UK and the world. Generosity is a hallmark of kingdom living! We've also given way over 50,000 hours of work to serve the community by painting refuges, homes, wrapping presents, building fences, doing DIY in peoples homes and providing clothes and baby equipment and gifts to families in need.
The photos here are of two of the main rooms at Freedom House that will be used for kids club when we have the auditorium and are used for the community all week long to bring healing.
Our Future Plans
The top picture shows the architects image of the new Freedom building. We are excited about our new auditorium being built which will become our Sunday services venue as well as allowing us room to host further meetings and projects, creating space to grow into our future. The project which has financed this last stage has been called the Generations Project 17-18, which is made up of people who see Freedom Centre as their home and have been committed to raising money and believing in miracles to see the remaining money come in to start building. Please do consider giving generously to our new project raising funds for the kitting out of the building!
The Cupboard
The Cupboard is our converted horsebox that has been home to four of the established kindness projects of the church. It has traveled to organisations or incidents to provide resources, support and relief and comprises many of the individual projects that we've undertaken for the last 15 years, with the added bonus of now being in a specially fitted and kitted out mobile unit! The horsebox has two lounges, a kitchenette, storage and flexibility. We have provided clothes for young families with babies; clothes for adults who are having tough times, we have provided DIY for desperate families, toys for certain situations and each Christmas. We also provide psychological first aid for incidents by specially trained people within the church who form this team.
The horse box is moving to a special school in Oxford who need the flexible space while their school is being renovated, to help the traumatised children recover from trauma. We are excited to be able to be blessing to them.
Pastors' Retreat Apartment
The apartment is part of the ministry here at Freedom Centre UK and is an amazing way of blessing those who serve and minister to people around the world.
Over the last eight years there have been very many leaders who have benefitted from either a rest or break or an organised retreat, facilitated to help them recover from their role with a place tor rest and relax and have provided free counselling or prayer ministry from people who understand the complexity of the role if they need it.
Hosting the TRC HQ
We are proud to have provided seed funding to see the Trauma Recovery Centre established and to continue to provide the building in Bath which houses their therapeutic play centre and staff offices. The founder of Freedom, Betsy de T, also founded the TRC and we continue to support the work of this incredible charity, alongside other churches across the UK. We have given over £400,000 to help run this much needed charity.
The Trauma Recovery Centre (TRC) exists to help children recover from trauma. Trauma is defined as an experience which is overwhelming and hinders the child’s safety and security. The TRC facilitates recovery for children and young people as they process trauma, and supports them as they piece their lives back together until a wholeness can be found. The TRC comprises four projects: therapy centre, training centre, Oakside Alternative Education Centre and the Treehouse Project.