All in a night's work for town's Street Pastors

News imageBBC Three men and two women are standing and smiling at the camera. They are all wearing navy jackets that say "Stafford street pastors" on the breast in white writing. One woman has a yellow hi-vis jacket onBBC
Left to right, William Morris, observer Lesley Ann, Jane, Dave and Andy ready for the Saturday shift

"Street Pastor one logging on."

"Good evening," a voice replies from a black radio.

Before heading onto the streets for their Saturday night shift, Stafford Street Pastors lead a prayer including the line "we pray we are in the right place at the right time."

For the next six hours, they walk the streets helping those in need as people spill out of venues, heading from bar to club, most under the influence of alcohol.

That night's leader, Jane, William Morris, Andy and Dave go out unpaid, armed with bags full of the essentials - flip flops, sick bags, lollipops, tissues and water.

They also have a radio which connects them to door staff at venues and to those monitoring CCTV.

Stationed on the busiest street in the town for clubs, they also have a bus, offering a warm space to sit, hot drinks, and a place to charge phones.

News imageA man with grey hair is wearing a navy cap that says "Stafford street pastors" in white writing. He is wearing a matching navy jacket with the same writing on the breast. He is leaning against a white van
William Morris said the street pastors had built relationships with local police and door staff

"We find that people are coming out and they'll go to a couple of venues which will close at about one, half-one... they then move on to the clubs which will be open until three, four in the morning, and that becomes quite a regular routine so we can anticipate roughly where everyone's going to be," said William.

"We deal with people at their point of crisis… it's not a kind of 'hit you over the head with a bible' type of approach, but it's witnessing our faith though kindness, through compassion, and meeting people where they are and dealing with a situation if we can, and supporting people."

News imageA navy cap with white writing on it that says "stafford street pastors". there is a blue bag containing yellow flip flops and blue plastic bags
The team offer people footwear, sick bags, water and other things like lollipops and tissues

A big part of the job is keeping an eye out for things, or anticipating what may happen.

"You begin to have a wider view on what's happening, so you're viewing the entrances to places, the taxi rank, who's on the street, what it feels like," William said.

"You can sense a night, you can sense an atmosphere."

Their first stop was The Yard, where at 23:00 GMT about 270 people were inside.

They then circle around venues, often stopping back at the bus where people knock on the door for help or support.

They are welcomed with smiles at each venue - doormen and women greet them, security staff bound over asking for lollies.

"We specifically have a relationship we develop with all the door staff, so they can call us if they need to," he added.

News imageA man with a black hat on, wearing a navy and black waterproof jacket. He is sitting inside a bus which has blue patterned seats
Andy inside the van, where people can go to stay safe and warm

"We need to know if they're prepared to tell us how many people are in the venue because that's helpful, how many people are in the queue," he said.

By 02:00 there were about 1,200 people in the Riva nightclub - a busy night.

"It's around this time that we may well receive calls where people are possibly getting thrown out of the venues or… not allowed in because they've had too much to drink," said Andy, who has been a street pastor for about 13 years.

That night, they helped a number of young people in the town, from a woman who could not get home, to a man who was found injured, and a man found lying intoxicated in a car park.

"I've got sons of my own who are above the age of most of the clientele here, it's nice to think if your kids are out on the street that there's somebody there keeping an eye out for them," he said.

News imageA large white van that has the words "safe space" on the bonnet. On the side it reads "Stafford Street Pastors, safe space".
The bus is parked on Bridge Street, where clubs and venues are open latest

At 03:20, people began to spill out of clubs and venues on Bridge Street.

Constantly scanning the area, Dave sat on the bus to watch the scene unfolding, ready to step in if anyone needed help.

"It's just trying to spot something that's not normal, so if there's a female who's on her own looking a bit upset or walking unsteadily, or if there's a group of lads hanging around, watching her," he said.

"I've got two young-ish teenage girls, 16 and 17, and I know deep down inside that soon they'll be going out, I won't be able to come around and follow them and make sure they're OK but... I know that one Saturday when I'm not there, there'll be some street pastors out keeping an eye on them from afar."

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