“Be Well is now becoming part of the fabric of the parish.” Be Well Hub spotlight: Meet Sacred Heart Wimbledon
Be Well is a South London Listens programme, which was set up to tackle loneliness and poor mental health by creating safe spaces in the community. These spaces are local places where people can find connection and support from trusted organisations, such as community centres, schools, libraries, faith groups, health centres and cafes.
In this series, we’re spotlighting Be Well Hubs across south west London, starting with Sacred Heart Wimbledon. Hear from the Be Well Lead for Sacred Heart, Graham Kennedy about why they joined Be Well and how they’re using it to support their parishioners.
Tell us about Sacred Heart?
“Sacred Heart Wimbledon is the largest Catholic parish in England without a cathedral. Around 1,300 people attend Mass each Sunday, approximately 6,000 receive our weekly parish newsletter, and around 9,000 are registered as parishioners.
“Parishioners value Sacred Heart as a place to deepen and practise their faith, and as a vibrant community where people find friendship, purpose and support. Through more than 50 social, spiritual and wellbeing groups, and a wide programme of parish events, Sacred Heart already plays a significant role in strengthening community life, reducing isolation, helping people navigate life-changing events, and supporting people living with long-term conditions such as dementia. The parish also helps families from outside the parish to integrate into local life.
“Although Sacred Heart is a large parish, our Be Well journey has taught us lessons that are transferable to parishes and faith communities of many sizes: start with what already exists, listen carefully, train a small group of willing people, work safely, and build gradually.”
Why did you become part of Be Well?
“Care for people’s wellbeing sits at the heart of the Church’s mission. In the Gospels, Jesus draws close to people who are sick, grieving, anxious, isolated or excluded. The Church continues that mission today by offering prayer, community, practical support and compassionate accompaniment.
“For a Catholic parish, concern for wellbeing is not an optional extra or a separate social project. It flows from our faith in Christ, who meets people in their suffering and calls the Church to be a place of compassion, healing and hope.
“Be Well offers us a practical way to live this mission in parish life. Parishioners and members of the wider community often approach the Church at moments of vulnerability: bereavement, loneliness, family breakdown, unemployment, anxiety, illness, migration or major life change. Sometimes what people need is spiritual support. Sometimes they also need practical help, community connection or professional services. Be Well helps us respond more confidently and safely by listening well, accompanying people with dignity, and signposting them to appropriate support.
“We did not become part of Be Well because we thought the parish could become a mental health service. We wanted clergy, staff and volunteers to be better equipped to respond pastorally, practically and safely to people when life becomes difficult.
“Be Well also resonates with the wider mission of the Archdiocese of Southwark and Caritas Southwark: putting the love of Christ into action through service, collaboration and care for those who are vulnerable, isolated or disadvantaged. Becoming a Be Well Hub has helped Sacred Heart build on what was already strong in the parish – our worshipping community, clergy, staff, volunteers, parish groups and relationships with local partners – and connect these more effectively to people’s real needs.
“As Fr Peter Mudu Frank, Assistant Priest at Sacred Heart Parish and a Be Well Champion, explains: “In the confessional, I can help people spiritually, but often they go away unfulfilled. Signposting them to resources which address their fundamental wellbeing problems means they go away full of hope and contentment.”
This captures why Be Well matters. It does not replace the spiritual life of the parish; it helps the parish express that spiritual life more fully. It enables us to become a stronger community where people can encounter Christ’s compassion, find belonging, and be helped towards hope.”
How did you bring Be Well to life in the parish?
“Sacred Heart was well positioned to bring Be Well to life. Wimbledon College, one of the local schools with which the parish has strong links, was in the vanguard of the Be Well initiative and was one of the first organisations to be recognised as a Be Well Hub; Merton Talking Therapies had been encouraging stronger links between the parish and South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust; a member of parish staff had previously begun exploring the benefits of becoming a Be Well Hub; the parish had recently engaged a qualified psychotherapist to offer free counselling; and Sacred Heart was already a member of Merton Citizens.
“The Parish Priest and Parish Pastoral Council therefore welcomed a proposal to assess the benefits and feasibility of Sacred Heart becoming a recognised Be Well Hub, including by running a pilot.
“South London Listens and Citizens UK trained a small group of enthusiastic volunteers, including me, as Be Well Champions and in community organising. This training gave us the confidence to start. From the beginning, parishioners were enthusiastic and encouraging.
“Early conversations at the parish’s monthly continental breakfasts, which Be Well Champions continue to attend, showed that parishioners were dealing with a wide range of wellbeing concerns, including relationship difficulties, worklessness, isolation and unresolved mental health issues. These conversations also surfaced more volunteers interested in being trained as Be Well Champions or supporting the initiative in other ways.
“We were fortunate to receive a grant from the Archbishop’s Appeal in the Archdiocese of Southwark to support social outreach. We used this momentum to publish a parish-specific signposting booklet, which has been very well received, and we are launching a programme of wellbeing talks.
“Other parish groups are already benefitting from Be Well. Memory Lane Club, which supports people with dementia and their carers, has trained volunteers as Be Well Champions. We have also trained almost all clergy and parish staff, which is especially important because front-line staff and clergy are often the first people approached by those experiencing difficulty.
“As Thelma D’Costa, Executive Assistant at Sacred Heart and a Be Well Champion, says: “Be Well, especially the training, coaching and signposting, have helped me elevate the service I provide to new levels. I am much better equipped to help parishioners and members of the community address their emotional needs when they approach me after a life-changing event, such as the loss of a loved one. Debbie Dixon, the principal trainer, is fantastic – she is always so calm and so willing to share her knowledge and wisdom.”
“Be Well is now becoming part of the fabric of the parish.”
How are you working with the wider community?
“We are grateful that organisations outside the parish have taken a keen interest in the development of Be Well at Sacred Heart. These include South London Listens, Merton Citizens, Wimbledon College, Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, Caritas Westminster and Caritas Southwark. Their encouragement, expertise and opportunities for connection have helped us see Be Well not as a standalone parish project, but an opportunity to be part of a wider movement of community organising, social action and compassionate care.”
What have parishioners said about Be Well?
“One parish beneficiary shared: “During the pandemic, my mother became suspicious that my father was pursuing interests outside their marriage. Their relationship deteriorated, and this started to affect the harmony and wellbeing of the whole family. Following a conversation with a Be Well Champion, my siblings and I were able to persuade my mother to engage a counsellor. We can already see the positive difference this is making to our family and, more importantly, to my parents’ relationship.” A conversation with a trained Champion may seem small, but it can help a person or family take the next step towards support, healing and hope.”
What are you planning to do next?
“Our next steps are to continue strengthening the parish community, promote and launch our programme of wellbeing talks, and publish a new parish annual report to celebrate and raise awareness of the parish’s many groups. Our encouragement to other parishes and faith communities is simple: start small, listen well, work safely, and build on the gifts already present in your community. Becoming a Be Well Hub can help turn compassion into practical action – and help more people encounter support, dignity and hope.”
About South London Listens
Launched in 2020, South London Listens is a unique partnership between the three mental health Trusts in south London, Citizens UK, local authorities, and community organisations, who together are using community organising to tackle the root causes of poor mental health.
