Rev Paul Nicolson Legacy Fund
This is the most recent photograph of our Dad the Reverend Paul Nicolson aged 87 who died peacefully on 5th March. In solidarity with our street-homeless comrades, he sat in the cold for hours and begged for money to compel the governing body of the Church of England to make better use of its own land in tackling homelessness.
Dad’s rare and singular character brought about a spectacular amount of positive and meaningful change to a vast number of people. We want to honour his magnificent legacy. That's why we have set up this fundraising page for the two organisations he established: Taxpayers Against Poverty and Zacchaeus 2000 Trust.
Please give whatever you can, no matter how much it all makes a difference and goes directly to the two organisations that live on in his memory. We will keep this page open up to 10th May which would be Dad's 88th birthday whereupon the funds will be equally split between each organisation.
A few words from Gill Wing, Co-director - Taxpayers Against Poverty
“At the last count, Taxpayers Against Poverty (TAP) had 24,221 likes and 23,991 followers on its Facebook page and 3,126 followers on Twitter . That is a testament to a shared belief in Paul’s mission that there should be ‘no citizen without an affordable home and an adequate income in work or unemployment’.
At Paul’s instigation, we recently joined forces with Compassion in Politics , which, like TAP, has no allegiance to any party, but campaigns to put inclusion at the heart of political decision-making. TAP counts among its many supporters in Parliament Debbie Abrahams MP, who chairs its biannual seminars in Westminster, at which leading academics and policymakers lead the discussion about how to effect real societal change.
Among the changes Paul was actively campaigning for until the day before he died was the elimination of homelessness. We hope that, as part of his legacy, that Early Day Motion will receive the serious consideration in the House that it deserves. After all, as Paul said, at the launch event for the Bill in December: “If you can save the banks through quantitative easing, you can save the homeless through quantitative easing.”
A few words from Raji Hunjan, Director - Zacchaeus 2000 Trust
"Z2K is a campaigning anti-poverty charity because that is at the heart of what our founder believed would enable social change. But he also believed in directly helping people to tackle the injustices that cause poverty. Z2K continues to combine direct benefits and housing casework with campaigning, using our casework evidence along with the voices of our clients to influence policy.
We are as proud of our name as Paul was. He named us after a biblical person who not only changed his own mind about taking money from the poor, he persuaded others to do the same.
It is important that we continue to generate the bulk of our income through independent funds as that enables us to challenge injustice without fear of losing our funding. All donations made through Paul’s legacy fund will be used to continue to help thousands of people suffering as a result of unfair welfare reforms and to ensure that evidence directly challenges government decisions."
The TAP and Z2K Story
In 1997 Dad founded the Zacchaeus 2000 Trust (Z2K), as a response to the Poll Tax. He commissioned the Minimum Income Standards research from the Family Budget Unit in 1999 which was used by UNISON and London Citizens to persuade Ken Livingstone, as Mayor of London, to introduce the London Living Wage. The Living Wage is now part of the lexicon of National Government, which is incredible despite the fact that it does not match the real Living Wage as set each year by the Living Wage Foundation.
Concerned at the interventions of the Charity Commission in the campaigning of charities for the people they serve he withdrew as the Chair of Z2K to found Taxpayers Against Poverty (TAP), which is not a charity, with a letter in The Guardian in 2012.
In recognition of International Women's Day this month here is Dad speaking at the 1000 Mothers March which he organised together with Crossroads Women's Centre , Winvisible and Global Women's Strike .
Thank you for your love and support, it means so much!
Paul's loving children,
Krissie, Claire, Tom, Hugo and Rod.
Dad’s rare and singular character brought about a spectacular amount of positive and meaningful change to a vast number of people. We want to honour his magnificent legacy. That's why we have set up this fundraising page for the two organisations he established: Taxpayers Against Poverty and Zacchaeus 2000 Trust.
Please give whatever you can, no matter how much it all makes a difference and goes directly to the two organisations that live on in his memory. We will keep this page open up to 10th May which would be Dad's 88th birthday whereupon the funds will be equally split between each organisation.
A few words from Gill Wing, Co-director - Taxpayers Against Poverty
“At the last count, Taxpayers Against Poverty (TAP) had 24,221 likes and 23,991 followers on its Facebook page and 3,126 followers on Twitter . That is a testament to a shared belief in Paul’s mission that there should be ‘no citizen without an affordable home and an adequate income in work or unemployment’.
At Paul’s instigation, we recently joined forces with Compassion in Politics , which, like TAP, has no allegiance to any party, but campaigns to put inclusion at the heart of political decision-making. TAP counts among its many supporters in Parliament Debbie Abrahams MP, who chairs its biannual seminars in Westminster, at which leading academics and policymakers lead the discussion about how to effect real societal change.
Among the changes Paul was actively campaigning for until the day before he died was the elimination of homelessness. We hope that, as part of his legacy, that Early Day Motion will receive the serious consideration in the House that it deserves. After all, as Paul said, at the launch event for the Bill in December: “If you can save the banks through quantitative easing, you can save the homeless through quantitative easing.”
A few words from Raji Hunjan, Director - Zacchaeus 2000 Trust
"Z2K is a campaigning anti-poverty charity because that is at the heart of what our founder believed would enable social change. But he also believed in directly helping people to tackle the injustices that cause poverty. Z2K continues to combine direct benefits and housing casework with campaigning, using our casework evidence along with the voices of our clients to influence policy.
We are as proud of our name as Paul was. He named us after a biblical person who not only changed his own mind about taking money from the poor, he persuaded others to do the same.
It is important that we continue to generate the bulk of our income through independent funds as that enables us to challenge injustice without fear of losing our funding. All donations made through Paul’s legacy fund will be used to continue to help thousands of people suffering as a result of unfair welfare reforms and to ensure that evidence directly challenges government decisions."
The TAP and Z2K Story
In 1997 Dad founded the Zacchaeus 2000 Trust (Z2K), as a response to the Poll Tax. He commissioned the Minimum Income Standards research from the Family Budget Unit in 1999 which was used by UNISON and London Citizens to persuade Ken Livingstone, as Mayor of London, to introduce the London Living Wage. The Living Wage is now part of the lexicon of National Government, which is incredible despite the fact that it does not match the real Living Wage as set each year by the Living Wage Foundation.
Concerned at the interventions of the Charity Commission in the campaigning of charities for the people they serve he withdrew as the Chair of Z2K to found Taxpayers Against Poverty (TAP), which is not a charity, with a letter in The Guardian in 2012.
In recognition of International Women's Day this month here is Dad speaking at the 1000 Mothers March which he organised together with Crossroads Women's Centre , Winvisible and Global Women's Strike .
Thank you for your love and support, it means so much!
Paul's loving children,
Krissie, Claire, Tom, Hugo and Rod.
Fundraising team (4)
Krissie Nicolson
Organizer
England
Z2K (registered as Zacchaeus 2000 Trust)
Beneficiary
Raji Hunjan
Team member
Lilian Lee
Team member
Samantha Evans
Team member