The Queen Victoria Seamen’s Rest has been helping seafarers for 180 years
25 October 2023
On Thursday 26 October, the Queen Victoria Seamen’s Rest (QVSR) will celebrate its 180th anniversary. Started as the Wesleyan Seamen’s Mission in 1843, it provides short and long-term accommodation along with support for seafarers in need.
The large, white building stands high and proud in Poplar, in the East-end of London. Home of the QVSR since 1887, the building provides seafarers and other homeless men with a place to live. “Staff, seafarers and volunteers, we are a family,” says Alexander Campbell, Chief Executive.
Renovations and refurbishments over the years have ensured QVSR offers top-notch “Premier Inn” style accommodation, along with amenities including a chapel, restaurant, an IT room, an entertainment room and an interfaith room. The improvements are ongoing, and more are planned.
“Around 90% of the UK's imports come via sea, yet the work of seafarers is often unrecognised. They sacrifice months away from their families for an isolating job. The plight of our seafarers is something that Methodist ministers recognised in 1843,” adds Julie Nelson, personal assistant to Alexander Campbell.
QVSR was originally set up to help seafarers and their families in London, as many men would often spend most of their wages before getting back home, leaving their families destitute. The Wesleyan Seamen’s Mission aimed to bring Methodist vales into seafarers’ lives. They offered lodgings and daily bible classes with lay people and “bible ladies” went around engaging with the local community.
When Revd David Roe became superintendent minister in 1898, he had “Wesleyan” dropped from the name and expanded the activities. “He was very forward-thinking and completely revolutionised how QVSR operated,” explains Julie. They purchased the building, gained the support of the royal family and in 1904 received the authorisation to rename the charity Queen Victoria Seamen’s Rest.
The assistance QVSR provided went beyond physical and spiritual support. A lawyer was made available on a weekly basis to provide legal advice to seafarers and, although the accommodation was initially meant to be temporary for seafarers on leave, it evolved into long-term housing solutions, especially in the twentieth century.
QVSR is now a residence for a diverse community of seafarers and ex-servicemen. Some consider it their permanent home, while others use it as a temporary residence while they search for employment or housing of their own. Others stay for short periods of time in between assignments.
QVSR has undergone significant changes over the past few years, with the addition of several new seafarers' centres at ports around the UK. The first was the Port of Tilbury (London) with the centre having since expanded to the Ports of Bristol, Felixstowe and Humber in 2022. Most of these centres have undergone refurbishment, and the QVSR facilities are now used by approximately 50,000 men every year. If you would like to contribute to how QVSR help seafarers, read this blog.
On Thursday 26 October, QVSR will celebrate its 180th anniversary with Lord Cashman as master of ceremonies. With Su Pollard as a special guest, the ceremony will celebrate the achievements of QVSR and its longest-serving staff, along with prayers for a very special evening.