They are committed Christians, but the salvation that they offer is more practical than spiritual. This Christmas hundreds of volunteers from the Street Pastors charity are aiming to help drunken revellers stay safe, offering support ranging from free pairs of flip-flops for women too unsteady to walk on high heels to first aid.

The pastors, who normally patrol the streets at weekends between 10pm and 4am, will be out in force over the holiday season to offer their unique brand of Christian compassion.

Instead of carrying Bibles in their rescue bags, they are equipped with space blankets for clubbers feeling the cold and first-aid kits to attend to the injuries suffered by those worse for the wear. The Street Pastors will also arrange taxis and, like all good Samaritans, provide a sympathetic ear to those who may be overindulging to escape their troubles.

James Duce, 35, who helped found the Aberdeen branch of the charity and now helps other groups across the country, said that Street Pastors had been welcomed with open arms by the communities in which it operates.

“The women can't believe that the local God Squad is giving out flip-flops - and that they are free of charge,” he said as he and a group of fellow volunteers patrolled Aberdeen city centre at the weekend.

“It is predominantly about providing public reassurance, although sometimes when people have had a couple of drinks they want to talk, so we have to do a bit of on-the-spot bereavement counselling, or listen to people talk about their relationships.”

Mr Duce believes that some of the people helped by the charity may have been in serious danger. In one case, they found a woman in her 20s who had been in a club but had left on her own after arguing with her boyfriend. She was slumped in a doorway, alone.

“She had come out of the club, the cold air had hit her, and she was in a doorway, crying,” Mr Duce said. “People can be very vulnerable in these situations. We got her warmed up, then got her a taxi home.”

The charity was founded by the Reverend Les Issac, director of the Ascension Trust, in London in 2003.

Aberdeen became the first Scottish branch of the charity in October 2007, followed by Inverness and Perth this year.

Street Pastors began patrolling in Dunfermline three weeks ago and the charity plans to begin patrols in Glasgow in the new year. The Aberdeen branch began with 25 volunteers, but now has a team of 50 people from 16 different churches in the city. There are more than 200 volunteers across Scotland.

Mr Duce said that volunteers found working for the charity highly rewarding. “This is about engaging with the public in a meaningful way. Churches can sometimes be seen as finger-wagging so this is helping to break down the stereotypes,” he added.

Each volunteer pays £300 for 12 weeks of training with sessions covering issues such as drug awareness, working with the police and first aid. The fee also helps to pay for volunteers' Street Pastor uniforms, consisting of distinctive jackets with bright lettering spelling out the name of the charity on the back, and beanie hats or caps.

Police believe that Street Pastors have a calming influence on the public and credit volunteers with helping to reduce crime. Figures released for Inverness this month showed that there were 489 police call-outs in the first two weeks of a Christmas operation, compared with 593 during the same period last year.

Although there are no figures for Aberdeen, Inspector George Macdonald, of Grampian Police, said that Street Pastors had made a positive contribution to the city.

“The Street Pastors initiative is very much a positive addition to the overall approach to community safety. There is little doubt that the presence and intervention of the pastors over the past twelve months has prevented situations escalating and persons becoming the victims of crime,” he added.

According to Mr Duce, the charity's aim for next year is to secure extra funding to introduce patrols to more parts of the country. The charity has approached businesses for donations and plans to ask the Scottish government for public funding.

“Alcohol is a real problem for Scotland, and we know the violence thing is linked,” he said. “The Bible says that we should be peacemakers so we feel that we have a role to fulfil and bring to the table.”

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