THE Archbishop of Canterbury has visited Winchester Street Pastors along with the Bishop of Winchester to join in prayer and conversation.

On October 25 at St Peter’s Pastoral Centre, the Most Rev Justin Welby visited the team at St Peter's Church in Jewry Street as part of his tour around Hampshire.

The following is a report from a street pastor team member that evening: "It was a privilege and a pleasure to have the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of Winchester come and meet our team of Street Pastors at St Peter’s in Jewry Street before our patrol last Friday. This was as part of his visit to the Winchester diocese over the weekend.

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The Most Reverend Justin Welby with Winchester Street Pastors (Image: Winchester Street Pastors) "We had the opportunity to sit, listen and discuss the current upswing in interest in things spiritual and the trends that are being noticed, particularly in the number of young men giving their lives to Christ as well as signs of growth in the church.

"Archbishop Justin and Bishop Philip had previously met with ten such young men before coming to St Peter's who had found faith following encounters with ‘ordinary’ Christians.

"This is being experienced nationwide and it was acknowledged that this coincides with so many different churches working together on so many social projects and that when people see Jesus at work in these situations it has a resonance that prompts further enquiry, something that Street Pastors find in their encounters on the streets when we are asked why we do what we do.

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"Deacon Martin from St Peter’s reiterated the vision for the St Peter’s pastoral centre, where that Canon Paul Townsend had had when the building was commissioned. He prayed that it would be a resource for the whole city as well as the parish, which was why he was delighted to offer the centre as a base for Street Pastors, as a witness to the unity of Christians and for the benefit of all who walk our city streets at night.

"The Archbishop  prayed for the team and the city before leaving us to go out into the city to be God’s hands and feet in Winchester that night."