Church to benefit from national grant

Tarporley Baptist and Methodist Church has been awarded a community grant of £5000 from the National Churches Trust

The grant will help to fund a major upgrade for the church. There will be a new, improved kitchen and coffee area and a new level floor to create a flexible space in the main part of the building, so it can be used both by the congregation and the community.

There will be major improvements to its facilities and access for people with disabilities, including a new toilet and a new entrance with steps and a ramp and a widened central aisle into the main church area.

The revamped facilities also widen the range of community projects the church can host, such as a winter soup kitchen for the elderly to help improve social inclusion and setting up a local Foodbank at the church.

Taporley Baptist and Methodist Church is one of 29 churches and chapels across the UK to benefit from the rescue funding of £391,000 from the National Churches Trust, a charity supporting church buildings of all Christian denominations.

'At the heart of the nation’s history, churches and chapels are some of the UK’s best loved local buildings. But their future is not guaranteed,' said Huw Edwards, Vice President of The National Churches Trust.

'The funding helps churches and chapels to flourish at the heart of their communities by safeguarding their architecture and making sure their facilities are up to date.'

The church has served the people of Tarporley since 1866 and celebrates 150 years of service this year. More than 200 new homes are being built in Tarporley and the nearby village of Beeston as part of a major expansion. There will be a growing demand for the church and its facilities as the population grows.

Other churches to have received the funding include St Athernase in Scotland, which has been a place of worship for over 900 years and St Margaret of Antioch, a church in Oxfordshire made famous by Brian May’s research into the stereoscopic imagery of Victorian photography TR Williams.

Three churches and chapels also received the first National Churches Trust micro-grants to set up a Cinnamon Network Recognised Projects. These grants will help churches set up social action projects such as CAP Money Courses and Make Lunch.

'Churches and chapels may be historic buildings, but they can be part of our future, too,' said Huw.

Picture: The National Churches Trust/flickr
 

By Kira Taylor