Julie-Anne Wanless

In a deprived urban neighbourhood Julie-Anne is considered a Christian community hero by many families who struggle with low incomes and poverty. 

Here is why...

Julie-Anne is an ordinary Christian who is doing some extraordinary things for God. She is the Community Network Manager at St Andrew’s in Clubmoor, Liverpool. Currently the church attracts over 400 people each week through its parenting courses, debt counselling and other activities. 

Seven years ago Julie-Anne had a good job with a major food retailer. But she wanted to do something different. So, when a friend suggested that she should consider a role at St Andrew’s she applied for it. 

Changing jobs wasn’t easy for Julie-Anne. For a while she wrestled with the fact that she had a well-paid job, but the calling to serve God was stronger than the desire to be comfortable. 

Julie-Anne loves her job at St Andrew's although no two days are the same. One day she could be supervising Baby Matters, a group for mums with babies under one year old. On another day, she could be helping a worried parent to break free of debt, or teaching a single parent, who has had a difficult upbringing how to show love to their children. 

Watch the award-winning film to see how Julie-Anne and St Andrew's transformed Jo and Craig's lives

Church Urban Fund has supported St Andrew’s Community Network since 2003 ensuring that workers like Julie-Anne and volunteers who work with her can show God’s love in practical ways to hundreds of adults and children living in a place that is amongst the 1% most deprived areas in England.

People often ask Julie-Anne "Why do you work at St Andrew’s?" And, her reply is simple: "Because I want to serve others with a Jesus heart."

But, her job is not yet done. In these hard times, she needs our support more than ever in order to continue to help local people break free from poverty.

Will you join forces with Julie-Anne today?

Your gift of £5 or £10 to Church Urban Fund would mean that Julie-Anne - and other Christian community heroes like her - can continue to train and support people who want to become better parents.

We'll keep you informed about how your monthly gifts are being used, enable you to pray effectively and share real life stories of the people whose lives are being touched by your generosity and prayers.

Together, we can tackle poverty.

UPDATE: Our film about Julie-Anne's work won a Jerusalem Award this year for best short form video. We are grateful to everyone involved in making the film.