Concert by the Saint Martin Singers with the Hampstead Players on 2nd April at 7.30 pm, in aid of the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture.
The Saint Martin Singers are a well established amateur choir, which originated at the church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields during the Second World War. They continue to bear the name of the saint who cut his cloak in half in order to share it with a stranger, an act of generosity which they continue to reflect. It is their tradition to give their services free, always paying their own expenses as they travel from place to place to sing for others, both giving pleasure through their lovely music and raising money for charities. Their programmes consist of music alternating with readings, usually by professional actors, but in this case by members of our own Hampstead Players.
The Singers are welcome back to Hampstead Parish Church. They last sang here about twenty years ago, in a concert to raise money for another cause. They have long had connections here as their number has included and still includes members or former members of this church, including one of their number who sang here as a choirboy under Martindale Sidwell. It is a great pleasure to have them to sing here again.
The charity for which they will be singing on this occasion is the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture. The Medical Foundation is the only organisation in the UK dedicated exclusively to providing care and treatment for survivors of torture. They have specially trained counsellors, psychiatrists and therapists. Some clients have one to one therapy; others attend therapeutic or support groups. Advocacy and policy work is also important, with the aim of protecting survivors and preventing torture by educating the public and decision makers about the reality and consequences of torture.
Over the last 25 years more than 50,000 people have been referred to the Medical Foundation and each year the Foundation provides care and treatment to thousands of torture survivors. Many volunteers with professional skills in counselling, therapy, including child therapy, medicine and other fields give their services, as well as those helping to run events.
An example of group therapy work is the Write to Life creative writing group. This brings clients together and enables them to regain their self-esteem, particularly when their work is published or presented to the public. A handful of these writings were read at our fundraising Evening of Words and Music last year and many people found them moving. Some writings containing very painful memories bear witness both to a horrific past and to the therapeutic power of the written word.
All too often one of the after-effects of torture is that victims are left so traumatised that they find it very difficult to speak of their experiences – an example of this, and of how long it can take to restore a victim to anything like normality, is contained in the Spring 2011 issue of the Medical Foundation’s newsletter “The Survivor”, of which there are copies at the back of the church. This initial inability to speak of what has happened is something which Home Office and Immigration officials all too often seem to fail to take into account when considering claims for asylum. This can necessitate the provision of medical evidence and legal support by the Medical Foundation.
The need for fundraising to support the care work is great and there are regional support groups to organise fundraising activities. Our local one is the Hampstead and Highgate Supporters’ Group, whose chair lives in Oak Hill Park. I have been invited onto its Committee to provide a link with this church. It is in conjunction with this local group that this church is promoting this concert.
Please come and support this event. It should be an enjoyable way of helping others in great need. See also the advert elsewhere in this magazine.
The Voice at the Foot of the Stair
John Willmer