A pastor who was previously a drug dealer and addict has brought hope and winter essentials to thousands this Christmas with his church’s foodbank. 

Mick Fleming, the pastor of the Church on the Street in Burnley revealed that the practical skills that made him a successful criminal are the same skills that allow him to help those in need.  

"I tell you what a foodbank is, it's a drug deal," he said, matter-of-factly in an interview with The Mirror.  

"It's really simple, you take the commodity, drop it off in one place, put it in bags and then you distribute it. It's logistics." 

The 59-year-old pastor has lived through extreme trauma, like many of the people that he now supports.  

Pastor Mick has spoken about the importance of an inclusive church and meeting people where they are.  

He said: "A long time ago I met Jesus in the shop doorway because I couldn't find him in the church. 

"That's where Jesus lives, in shop doorways, with a girl selling herself for a tenner, with hungry children, with the poor. I know about that, I know where to go to find it, most Christians don't.” 

The Church on the Street has just launched its annual Coats and Shoes (CAS) appeal where they have been providing free winter coats and boots to hundreds of children in Burnley and beyond.  

The town has one of the highest rates of child poverty in the UK, being 40 per cent ahead of the 22 per cent national average. .  

Pastor Mick told the paper: “We have pensioners now who can't afford to maintain even a frugal lifestyle, suicide rates are sky high, people who are middle class are feeling the pinch badly, working class people they've been sold a lie. This appeal is just the little bit we can do to help, but it will make a real difference to children and families facing hardship.”

This summer, he sold most of his possessions to live on his “Church on Wheels” and continue his work ministering to people where they are. He was later warned by a police officer that he could face hate speech allegations over a Bible verse on the back of his motorhome. 

He told Premier Christian News at the time that “as Christians, our faith has to be authentic. I'm not saying everyone has to give everything away, but you have to stand by your convictions. You have to stand on the truth of the word of God, and you have to show people that you're living it out.”