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Belfast Central Mission

Supporting those who need it most

• Who we are
• What we do
• How to Help
• Conference Facilities

• About us
• BCM's Archive

Who we are

About Us

Belfast Central Mission is an agency of the Methodist Church. It was founded in 1889 by Rev Crawford Johnson as part of the Church's response to problems inherent in inner-city life. The motivation was then, as now, to meet the needs of the whole person, spiritual, emotional, social and physical regardless of class, creed or colour.

Today, BCM continues in that tradition through its three congregations at Grosvenor Hall, Sandy Row and Springfield Road and through its wide range of social work projects and community services throughout Northern Ireland. The Mission's professional social work is set within a context of Christian belief, though no religious commitment is required from its staff or anyone wishing to benefit from its services. BCM's purpose is to express the Christian faith in action, through a basic respect for human dignity, and thus commend it to others. Its current services include:-

• Inner city Advice Centre
• Supported Housing for young adults leaving care
• Floating Support for young people (16-25) and older people (60+)
• Providing support for vulnerable young people
• Residential Accommodation for Older People
• Christmas Support Programme
• Cross-community Children's Holidays
• Holidays for Older People
• EAGLE Project – support for families with a recent diagnosis of autism

BCM's archive.

Our archive comprises of a substantial collection of some 10,000 items, including both documentary and photographic materials. It dates from the late 1880's and is particularly strong for the period up to c1930. It has been recognised by the public records office for Northern Ireland as an important source for those interested in both the religious and social life of Belfast during the past 125 years.

Of particular significance is the collection of photographs taken by A.R Hogg, one of the two great photographers of Belfast in the early years of this century. He was commissioned by BCM to record its activities (largely for use in promotional and fundraising material.)

The collection is increasingly being accessed for research purposes and photographs from it have appeared in a number of recent books and television documentaries. For this reason BCM has decided to index and scan the total archive onto computer using the museum industry standard, MODES programme to make it more widely available. Ultimately it is hoped that it will be possible to access it via the internet.

The history of BCM during its first 100 years (1889-1989) has already been published. "At Points of Need", was written by Dr R.D.E Gallagher, a former Superintendent of the Mission and was published by Blackstaff Press (1989).