Open House: Serving Sheffield
An interview with Dave Stout and Bess Popplewell
Beth Craggs
Earlier this year we popped to Woodseats to hear about an exciting project bringing new life to the Open House community space. We met with team members Bess Popplewell and Dave Stout, who joined the Open House trustee board in 2021 having spent a few years supporting the charity in voluntary roles (along with their other halves Tom and Beth). They told us the story of Open House, and how they got involved.
How long have you lived in Sheffield?
DS: I’ve lived in Sheffield for just over ten years now. It’s easy to remember because I moved here to get married to Beth who runs Golddigger Trust, an amazing charity supporting young people’s wellbeing. We’ve got a couple of girls aged 2 and 5, and Sheffield is now very much our home.
BP: I’ve spent 11 years living in Sheffield with my husband who was born and raised here. Despite starting our married life on the other side of the Pennines, we always knew we’d come ‘home’ to settle. We’ve lived in Woodseats for 8 years now and have two children.
What influenced your decision to join Open House?
BP: I remember sitting round Beth & Dave’s kitchen table dreaming about a place where we could extend our own open door policy. Pre-Covid, our house always had people coming and going, helping themselves to drinks and joining us for food and company.
Our kitchen table became a significant place for community building and sharing God’s love with our neighbours. When we were talking with Beth and Dave, we felt called to do something on a slightly bigger scale. Woodseats seemed like the obvious place to try although we were aware of Open House and the role it previously played in our community.
By this point, Open House had been closed for a few years and in quite a state of disrepair so as a starting point we approached the trustees to see what was happening. What we didn’t want to do was step on any toes; we’re about collaboration and partnership and we wanted to join and support the project rather than “compete” with it.
Then last year things started to shift following a few fallow years and we thought it was the right time to step up onto the trustee board. We’re looking forward to opening the coffee shop this year so, as is always the case, it really feels like God has had the timing in control even though it has been a little frustrating waiting for what feels like such a long time.
What has been bringing you closer to God lately
DS: For me, music is always a massive part of my relationship with God. At the moment I’m finding myself seeing and experiencing God in music that might not necessarily be trying to achieve that as the principal aim.
I love ‘Symphony’ by Clean Bandit featuring Zara Larsson, that’s got real vibes and I think it’s really powerful lyrically. Similarly, ‘Good’ by Jake Isaac is a really beautiful love song, but it’s got a depth and richness that can be an expression of that connection we find through the work of the Spirit.
BP: Learning what Church looks like during a pandemic has been a really interesting process for me. As a family, we’ve not been able to access our church services in the “normal” way and so we’ve been driven to find new and extra ways of being with and serving God as a family in our local community.
Seeing practical expressions of faith and developing new relationships has been incredible. I love hearing how God is working with other people and celebrating His goodness with those around me.
I think in this time, God has helped me reset my expectations of what I'm called to and I regularly recall Micah 6:8: “And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
What is the Open House project?
BP: When it opens, Open House will be a home away from home; a place where people can have a great cup of coffee (other beverages will be available) and amazing cakes, but it won’t just be a coffee shop. Our guests will be welcomed and served by a team of people who love Jesus and who are ready to share His love with them.
When we imagine the shop being open, we see a place where the Spirit dwells and where people will feel His presence and experience His love. We want to create a space where questions can be asked and where everyone is welcome because we believe that’s at the heart of the Gospel message.
Open House will work with the local churches and Christian outreach projects to provide this space; we’re not interested in doing this alone!
What inspired the project?
DS: Open House started back in the 80’s creating a welcoming community space for the people of Woodseats to experience the love of God on the High Street. It was a home for many people during those first couple of decades but by the late 2000’s the building had become unsuitable and it had to close.
A new set of trustees took it on and then a few years later we joined in as well, and we’ve always wanted to keep close to that original vision of being light in the world.
BP: The belief that God is present in the everyday is what drives the team forward. Jesus did a lot of his ministry with food and at tables and so we believe that it can be as simple as that. We feel God calling us to create a space where the ordinary can meet the extraordinary.
What guided you to locate the project in Woodseats?
BP: Open House is 100% Woodseats. It always has been and always will be home. The building is right on the High Street (Chesterfield Road) and it’s an ideal place to be a witness of God’s love, hope, and promise.
God provided the building originally and despite considering moving the project elsewhere, He continues to speak into the location. Of course we would love for Open House to be a resource for all of Sheffield; we’re excited for churches to run away-days or hold community groups in our upper rooms, and we can’t wait to fling wide our doors for people to experience God and our community.
Who knows where God will take us, but right now, he’s working in Woodseats and so here is where we’ll stay!
What have been some high points in the project so far?
DS: I guess a real eye opener has been hearing about the impact Open House has already had on so many people over the years. And some really surprising connections as well. This sort of project can draw people in from across a whole host of different backgrounds and it’s so powerful to hear of how God moves in people.
The other real high point has been the weekly prayer meetings.
BP: Yeah, they’ve been really amazing. Each week we meet on zoom and we pray for our local community and the building developments. This prayer group only started in the Autumn of 2020 but it has been such a valuable and encouraging online space. For me personally, it has kept me connected and accountable and I am so grateful that others are able to be involved with Open House at this part of the project.
How has the local Christian community responded to the project?
BP: They’ve been amazing. So many people have memories of what Open House was and when they hear of the plans for the renewed Open House they really reaffirm the calling of God on this project, and that’s been such a driving force for us to keep going when it’s been hard.
Have there been any very specific answers to prayer?
BP: Absolutely! Easter 2021 was a huge turning point for Open House. I think a lot of us involved in the project had grown weary with the lack of progress and were starting to feel hopeless.
But in God’s perfect timing, he prompted some conversations which resulted in a large grant that meant the project could continue (both with the financial input and a new found motivation). Not only that, after years of trying to get the right people involved, this time was also the season where God provided a contractor, an architect and a structural engineer who were all a perfect fit for Open House and excited to be involved.
We’ve all kicked into gear with a fresh spirit and are so grateful for that time, which was very difficult but incredibly fruitful.
When do you hope to open?
DS: Well, the building work has started so if all goes to plan we expect to open during the summer months. We’ve got a great team working on the project from the architects and surveyors right through to the contractors and everyone is pulling in the same direction, but as we all know building projects often have a timeline of their own making so we’re holding on to our deadlines lightly.
How can Christians support the project, both now and in the future?
BP: We are still a little short of our desired financial goal so donations would be absolutely amazing. If people would like to give then they can visit our website www.openhousesheffield.co.uk and all the details are there.
But to be honest, what we’ve all learnt through this project (something we all knew but what is so easy to ignore) is that when a project is rooted in prayer that’s when everything starts to align.
As I mentioned earlier we have a weekly prayer meeting on Zoom and we’d love for people to join us (details are in the ‘What’s Next?’ section of the website).
Do you have any prayer requests for the Open House project?
DS: As Bess said we are still looking for donations to enable us to open as soon as possible, so that is a key need.
But also we’d love prayer for wisdom around how to support our community in Woodseats once we’re open as the way we interact with the community will significantly change.
There are so many opportunities and deciding what we should do - and what we shouldn’t do - is going to be one of the really big questions we’re asking over the coming months.
