Building Construction - R & R Appeal 2005 - The Project

Introduction:
The project started on Monday 4^th April 2005
The project was completed & church reopened on 10th December 2005.
Architects – Brownhill Hayward Brown of Lichfield
Contractors – Boshers of Cholsey
The estimated time is 30 weeks

Repairs:
Externally all the roofs (especially the flat roof over the Lady Chapel) will be maintained, and the building itself will be re-pointed where necessary.  The Church cross will be painted.  Suitable lighting will be installed.  The 'usual' maintenance will be undertaken.

Inside, the electric wiring will be renewed (nothing since 1936!) and the heating system will be upgraded.  The reredos will be repaired.

The entrance will be upgraded to allow easier access, especially for the disabled. There will be appropriate landscaping.

Two Extensions:
Both of these will have an entrance from inside the church. To the left of the entrance will be a toilet with disabled facilities.  The second extension will cover the lawn to the left of the path leading to the presbytery.  It will provide a weekday chapel, which will double as a meeting room for such things as Sunday Children's Liturgy.  There will also be much needed additional storage space.

Re-Ordering:
The Entrance will be changed: the inner porch will be removed; a glass screen, artistically etched, will drop from the front of the choir gallery. This will form a secure area that will double as a meeting area and a place where people can come to pray without going into the main part of the church.

The Sanctuary will be extended forward by adding a broad step in front of the altar in line with the centre of the first arch above the sacristy door. (NB. the Pugin Ensemble will be untouched except for repair). There will be a new altar in stone in memory of the late Canon Toplass and the present pulpit will be re-fashioned into a suitable ambo.  The baptismal font will be moved forward to the front on the new step on the Lady Chapel side.

The Lighting will be greatly upgraded, and a modern sound system and deaf loop installed.

The church will be suitably painted.

There are many other details, small and large, which will add to the dignity of the building.

The project is large, but everyone involved agrees that all the work has to done now: we have one bite of the cherry, so to speak.

Our target: £500,000

It is worthwhile noting that our predecessors handed on to us this church, built in 1936, and we have lived in it 'rent free'.  If we were to buy the land and build the house and church (which they did in the 1930s) then at today's prices we would be paying about £2.5 million. The congregation of about 100 paid for it all in seven years.

The decrees of the Second Vatican Council and the needs of the community make all works essential. They have the full backing and support of the diocese and the archbishop.

We will be passing on to future generations a church worthy of the 21st Century.

Even though the reconstruction is now complete we still need your help?   How you can Help?

View Photos of Building Construction