The Church Room at All Saints has been a meeting place for worship and fellowship for many years. It was not built to particularly exacting standards, and recently has suffered from rising damp and a leaking roof. The kitchen facilities and the toilet left a lot to be desired. A couple of years ago we decided that it was in desperate need of refurbishing.
To this end we started to raise the money, and with generous donations from the church community and joyful fund raising events, we amassed nearly £14,000 in our building fund. This was not enough to carry out the refurbishment so we looked at obtaining grants. With the help of a local benefactor we applied to the Thatchers Foundation.
Just before Christmas last year we heard from Anne Thatcher, the Foundation Co-ordinator, that we would be given a grant of £15,000 towards the refurbishment. This meant that we could go ahead with the work, which started, using local reputable contractors, in January this year.
It is now finished, and we have a bright and colourful new room with modern kitchen facilities, and a toilet which is disabled compliant, with access for wheelchairs through a new sliding door and an alarmsystem. It also has a baby changing station.
On Saturday 20th September we had the Official Opening. The church was full and guests were providedwith tea, coffee and a wonderful selection of cakes, all served by our Community Café volunteers. OurChurchwarden Diana introduced Martin Thatcher, who did the honours by cutting the ribbon. She thanked the Foundation, and also the many supporters from our church community and beyond who generously donated to the Project. Towards the end we were short of a few items of fixtures and fittings. Again our wonderful church community sponsored items and donated an extra £2,000.
On behalf of the Project Team I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the refurbishment.
It goes to show what can be achieved by a small, but vibrant, church community within the Benefice of Winscombe and Sandford with Churchill.
Douglas Ogram
On behalf of the Project Team
