Stronger communities. Greater opportunity. Lasting change.
We work alongside local people and partners to address the barriers that keep families in poverty and strengthen the resources, skills and confidence communities need to thrive.
Poverty is more than low income: it can mean insecure work, missed learning, poor access to care and little voice in local decisions. Rescue Mission combines practical livelihoods support with community-led partnerships, so families can gain greater security and plan for the future.
Developing livelihoods, enterprise and employable skills so families can build more stable income.
Supporting safe water, learning, community facilities and other foundations for wellbeing.
Helping people lead decisions, protect progress and respond to future challenges.
A lasting response tackles today’s household pressures while expanding skills, resources and community choices for tomorrow.
Irregular work, weak market links and rising input costs make it harder for families to save, plan ahead or withstand shocks.
Young people and caregivers can be excluded from training, affordable tools, mentors and routes into decent livelihoods.
Projects are less durable when residents, women and people with disabilities cannot shape priorities or hold decisions accountable.
Families may face lost harvests, irregular earnings, inaccessible services and few safe routes into employment.
Relevant skills, stronger local systems, shared resources and community-led decisions can open pathways to resilience. | DONATE NOW › GET INVOLVED ›
Supporting people to build useful skills, fair access to markets and more dependable livelihoods.
Rescue Mission describes community enterprise, vocational training, agricultural production and income-generating work. Combining these with practical coaching, accessible finance and links to buyers can help households move from one-off help towards lasting opportunity.
Match training to local demand, supported practice and realistic routes into work.
Provide suitable tools, materials or inputs, with fair selection and a plan to maintain them.
Build confidence with savings, pricing, customer needs, record-keeping and market access.
Encouraging women’s voice, safe participation, practical enterprise skills and the ability to make financial decisions.
Supporting vocational pathways, apprenticeships, employability and positive routes into adult life.
Strengthening production, climate-aware choices, nutrition and connections between growers and local markets.
Better everyday services protect health, free up time and make participation in learning and livelihoods possible.
Safe, reliable water and good hygiene reduce avoidable health risks and can lessen time spent collecting water.
Education, adult learning and training create choices for young people and help strengthen local economies.
Trusted spaces, distribution points and local groups help families connect with information, supplies and support.
Check affordability, disability inclusion, safety, cultural relevance and the needs of people living furthest from services.
Agree local responsibilities, skills, future running costs and maintenance before a project becomes dependent on outside support.
Look beyond the physical asset to the opportunities, time savings, wellbeing and participation it can make possible. | DONATE NOW › GET INVOLVED ›
Good development is shaped, owned and safeguarded by the people who use it – including those too often excluded.
Good projects begin with listening: what residents value, who faces the greatest barriers and which local strengths already exist. Women, young people, people with disabilities and marginalised households need safe, practical ways to influence plans, access services and raise concerns.
Rescue Mission describes working with local leaders and community-based organisations. Shared decisions, clear safeguarding, feedback and local skills transfer help ownership continue long after start-up support has ended.
Map local priorities and the challenges people identify.
Agree fair, realistic plans, roles and protection measures.
Work with capable partners and community representatives.
Review learning, build local skills and plan for continuity.
Three evidence-informed programme spotlights adapted from Rescue Mission’s published descriptions; outcomes and numbers should be checked before publication. | DONATE NOW › GET INVOLVED ›
Rescue Mission’s food and nutrition webpage reports support for 2,750 young farmers in Ghana through training, seeds and agricultural tools. The aim is stronger food production and household food security. Responsible follow-up should examine how skills, yields and market opportunities change over time.
Rescue Mission describes income-generating work for women in Ghana and Senegal, including food-processing machines and locally produced nutritious products. Training, collaboration, safe working conditions and links to buyers can help turn a livelihood activity into more reliable household choices.
Rescue Mission’s Water for Life approach describes collaboration with local partners on wells, rainwater collection and protected sources. Reliable services also need trained operators, affordable maintenance and safe access for women, girls, older people and disabled residents.
A meaningful result is a practical improvement in household opportunity, service access or local decision-making.
Monitor change, not activity alone: agree a starting point with residents, gather safe and proportionate feedback, and review whether different groups benefit. Record lessons openly and revise support when barriers persist.
• Economic opportunity
Training put to use; income pathways and livelihoods maintained; household resilience.
• Access to essentials
Reliability and accessibility of services; time saved; barriers reduced.
• Local capacity
Residents shaping decisions; local groups active; shared assets maintained.
Agree with participants what the current needs, barriers and realistic expectations are before delivery.
Combine activity records, participant experience and appropriate follow-up checks; do not rely on attendance alone.
Review results with communities, hear complaints safely and improve projects where evidence shows a better route.
Your donation, partnership, volunteering or fundraising can help communities build the conditions for long-term opportunity.
Make a donation
Contribute to community-focused work according to current programmes and priorities.
Partner with us
Explore a corporate, institutional or community partnership around clear shared goals.
Volunteer or fundraise
Use time, skills, events and networks to strengthen awareness and support.
Share our mission
Encourage others to learn about community development and poverty reduction.
Give a one-off or regular gift, join a community fundraiser or explore a purposeful partnership.
Rescue Mission is a registered company limited by guarantee (Company No. 10413275) Registered Charity No. 1196944 (England & Wales) 20-22 Wenlock Road, London, N1 7GU, England, United Kingdom
