PEOPLE in Gorse Hill will be praying that Jahmene Douglas makes it to number one this weekend as members of his former church show their support.

The Bible Life Church, based at the Gorse Hill Community Centre, have supported Jahmene from day one and are hoping he will be top of the album charts on Sunday.

Jahmene opened up a narrow lead at the top of the artist albums’ midweek chart with his debut Love Never Fails, which he launched from the North Swindon Asda store on Monday.

He is only a few thousand sales ahead of Robin Thicke’s Blurred Lines, which debuted at No 1 last Sunday but dropped to 2 in the midweek chart.

Jahmene visited the Gorse Hill Community Centre with Nicole Scherzinger on his arm last December to perform with his old choir, and showed off his gospel voice.

Nicole donned a purple robe as she joined in with the choir of the Bible Life Church, and Jahmene took centre stage to sing four gospel songs.

More than 400 people waited outside the community centre in the cold to catch a glimpse of Jahmene before he joined the 150-strong congregation inside.

Pastor Timothy Walome and members of the congregation visited Jahmene on Monday and have all been out to buy the album to help their former member.

He said: “We are all supporting Jahmene and are all hoping he goes to number one this weekend with the album.

“Every opportunity we get to go and support him we do. Like last week he had a concert in London and we went down to give him support during the launch at Asda.

“For us it is a sense of pride to see that there was a life that was picked up by what we are doing here in Gorse Hill.

“He has been back to see us when he was in the area but it was in the middle of the week, he is so busy at weekends now that there are no opportunities to come back for a Sunday service, which we understand.

“His contribution is very positive for the church and he is proving to be a great inspiration for the young people who are looking to find their talent.

“There is talent around us and we are keen to develop that.”

The church plays an important role in the community of Gorse Hill and is well supported, with between 100 and 200 people attending the Sunday service every week.

They are planning to cater for the community over the summer with a five-a-side football tournament and a couple of barbecues at Edinburgh Street Rec.

Pastor Walome said: “It is important for us to support the community around us because it is a mandate from God that we should love everyone, and life is not an easy path so we want to be there to help people through it.”

To find out more about the church and what they have planned visit www.biblelife fellowship.co.uk.