England & Scotland

Our presence in England & Scotland

The Religious Sisters of Charity were founded in 1815, by Mary Aikenhead where she laid the foundations for the work of our congregation, by founding a hospital, founding a school, and visiting poor people in their homes.

Our work today still falls into those same categories of ministry, as our founder, Mary Aikenhead’s work did:

Healthcare ministry
Pastoral/social ministry

See the form our work takes in the England & Scotland Province, detailed below.

Religious Sisters of Charity in England and Scotland stairs

Religious Sisters of Charity in England and Scotland tabernacle

England – 1840 & 1890
On the 16th June 1840 at the request of the parish priest of St Ignatius Parish, Preston in the North-West of England, a community of five sisters took possession of a new convent.

The Sisters worked tirelessly to serve the people in Preston. However, it became necessary to withdraw from Preston as the sisters health was suffering. this was a great sorrow for all involved. Mary Aikenhead assured them that one day the sisters of Charity would be back in the UK and perhaps not too far from where they had been.

Mary Aikenhead herself did not live to see her words come through.

It was in 1890 the sisters responded to the request of the Bishop of Shrewsbury to open a home for women who were in difficulties and had nowhere to go. It was only on the fourth request did Mother General feel she had enough sisters available to take on the new venture.

Since 1890 there has always been Religious Sisters of Charity in the UK.

Scotland – 1948
On 8th September 1948, our Congregation began ministry in Clydebank, Scotland working in the parish and school at the request of the Parish Priest to visit homes and organise parish groups.

Initially 4 sisters went and then a month later 2 other sisters joined them and began a 2-year teacher training course.

Not long after their arrival one of the sisters was out visiting and met a gentleman with advanced throat cancer who told her that he had nowhere to go, he felt he was growing steadily worse and had no-one to care for him.

The Sisters saw a need which was different from the original one for which they had been missioned. They acted in the spirit of Mary Aikenhead and asked if it might be possible to send over a Sister trained in nursing who would look after this man and others like him – thus began the Hospice in Clydebank, growing steadily as the demand arose. In 1950 the hospice was opened and named St Margaret’s. Today this is a flourishing ministry.

Our Ministries in England & Scotland

Social and Pastoral

Prayer and Intercession

Anti-Human Trafficking Campaigning

UK Government information describes Human Trafficking as ‘the recruitment or movement of people for exploitation by the use of threat, force, fraud, or the abuse of vulnerability

Trafficking is a crime that crosses international borders or within a country. It often crosses multiple geographic and legal boundaries. Men, women and children may be trafficked for various purposes, including unpaid labour in many sectors including agriculture, domestic servitude, forced begging and petty theft, sexual exploitation and horrifically, organ harvesting.

Individuals trafficked are extremely traumatised and may suffer acute and long-term health and emotional problems. They need the support of multiple agencies to provide safe housing and ongoing support.

As a Province, we have expressed our commitment by working with the Medaille Trust, an Intercongregational Charity dedicated to the provision of Safe Housing for victims of Trafficking.

Sisters also work to support and accompany victims of Human Trafficking, raise awareness of the plight of trafficked people and campaign to inform and change Government policy.

This they do through working with TRAC, an inter-congregational group of Sisters.

Sisters are also involved with other organisations such as:

Equality Now
Not for Sale
Bakhita House
Medaille Trust
APT (Act to prevent Trafficking, Ireland)

Parish

Many of our Sisters continue to work daily in Parish Ministry throughout our Province, supporting and connecting people with their local Parish Community, whether in their own homes, Hospital or in Residential Homes. Our sisters also work as part of the Parish Team bringing the Eucharist to the Sick and Elderly in the Community.

Our sisters feel that in the Parish setting, they have the ideal opportunity to support the poor whether they are materially, emotionally or spiritually poor.

In the many Parishes, which operate Food Banks, our sisters are actively involved in this vitally important ministry, meeting and supporting people in dire need from all parts of society and all cultures.

Hospice Care

The word Hospice had traditionally meant a safe place of rest on a journey. When in the spirit of Mother Mary Aikenhead, our first Hospice was founded in 1879 in Dublin, this concept would develop into the modern specialist Palliative Care Facilities we see today, caring for each patient and their loved ones with love and compassion.

The Core Values of the Sisters of Charity can be found in all our associated Care facilities and Hospices.

Our core values are:

Human dignity: respecting the uniqueness of each person
Compassion: giving support and understanding to one another
Justice: acting with integrity, respecting the rights of all
Quality: always seeking to improve our knowledge and standard of care
Advocacy: striving to create a community characterised by harmony and collaboration

We are very happy that a number of our sisters continue to work and volunteer daily in our associated Hospices – Click on the links below.

Chaplaincy

Chaplains provide Spiritual and Religious Care in many places such as Hospitals, Prisons and Hospices. A number of our Sisters continue to work and volunteer daily in our associated Hospices. They work alongside Professional Teams, to provide a holistic patient-centred approach, listening with love, compassion and care and including family and friends in this.

Listening with compassion can often allow people to reconnect with their faith or come to faith for the first time. For Chaplains, the role can be just to walk alongside, accompanying the patient on a journey of spiritual exploration.

Our Sisters also work in the Mission Effectiveness Programme with staff to promote the Mission and Core values of the Sisters of Charity in the Hospice settings.

Immigration and Detention

Detention Centres or Immigration Removal Centres in the UK is where some immigrants, including children, can be held in detention whilst awaiting a decision to be made by the Immigration Authorities, as to whether they are eligible for a UK visa or entitled to asylum in the UK.

The UK currently has 11 Detention Centres. One of our Sisters visits an Immigration Centre regularly. This is very much appreciated and welcomed by those waiting while their life is on hold.

Asylum Seekers and Refugees

Our sisters work with various organisations such as RESTORE, which offer support to people through Advocacy and Accompaniment in different settings either online, in person or by phone.

In this Ministry, it is vital to just listen to the many harrowing stories with compassion.

This is a long journey for an immigrant and it continues as they struggle to find a place in a new country that can sometimes be a hostile environment. In the Parishes, the sisters also work to support immigrants settling into a Parish Community.

Care of the Earth

The Religious Sisters of Charity have identified the Care of the Earth as a priority for us, as a Congregation. In our Province, we continue to explore ways of making this a reality in our lives.

To this end, we have committed ourselves to take whatever action we can to prevent the advance of Climate Change, the depletion of the earth’s resources and the pollution of our planet.

By volunteering at CAFOD, Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, Sisters work with Parishes to encourage and support them in their efforts to promote the health of the Planet through the ‘Live Simply’ Award Campaign.

Religious Sisters of Charity, England & Scotland

St Joseph’s Convent, 36 Mare St, Hackney,
London, E8 4AD. London

Phone: 00 44 (0) 208 510 3675

Email: bursar@rsoccaritas.org

Registered Charity Number England & Scotland

The Charity Commission of England and Wales - No 231323

The Office of the Scottish Charities Regulator in Scotland - Charity Registration Number SC039185.

Safeguarding Policies in England & Scotland

Safeguarding Statement
We, the Religious Sisters of Charity, cherish and affirm each child and vulnerable adult as a gift from God and we acknowledge each person’s inherent right to dignity of life and bodily integrity. We will strive to ensure that this right is respected, nurtured and protected by all. Everyone in our organisation has an obligation to ensure that the fundamental rights of children and vulnerable adults are respected. We are committed to ensuring that each member of our organisation is aware of and complies with this obligation. Congregational Statement 2010

Each person made in the image and likeness of God, is endowed with immense dignity and potential, has the right for that dignity to be recognised and respected at all times and for that potential to be developed. Any action or offence against the dignity and rights of the human person is against God and humanity. The violation of the dignity and potential of a child or vulnerable adult is a grievous offence and cries out for justice. As Religious Sisters of Charity, we are called to serve the most vulnerable and needy, thereby giving witness to the love of God, by valuing and protecting the most vulnerable in our society.

As a Province we work with the Conference of Religious, the Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency (CSSA), Religious Life Safeguarding Service (RLSS) to promote a ‘One Church’ commitment to Safeguarding across all Dioceses and Religious Life Groups. This encourage all organisations to work to a common standards based approach with transparency and accountability.
Following the emergence of the new regulatory and supportive frameworks for Religious Life Groups, we are pleased to work with the following agencies and supportive services – for full information see the links to the websites.
Our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) for the English / Scottish Province is:
Mrs Barbara Veeramallay-Permaul - bcapitanucci@me.com - Mobile – 07974092866

For the Safeguarding Policy Province of the England / Scotland -

View Safeguarding Policy.

SCOTLAND

SCSSA - Scottish Catholic Safeguarding Agency
64 Aiken St, Airdrie, ML6 6LT

ENGLAND & WALES

CSSA - CATHOLIC SAFEGUARDING
STANDARDS AGENCY
39 Eccleston Square, London, SW1V 1BX

RLSS - RELIGIOUS LIFE SAFEGUARDING SERVICE