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This is a text-only version of an article first published on Friday, 23 July 2021. Information shown on this page may no longer be current.
St Mary the Virgin, Longcot
Tier 2
It has been a long-term aspiration to create a safe, sacred, practical and welcoming space within St Mary's Longcot for people to use - which initially meant drainage, a kitchen, a toilet and a meeting room, so that they could be truly hospitable and available to all ages.
They also needed to do this without losing seating space for larger services and to ensure that the village school could have their services in the church. The grant from the Development Fund (£20,000) is the last step on a road which started in 2010, and Revd Norma Fergusson, vicar in the Shrivenham and Ashbury Benefice, is confident that they will now be able to complete their decade-long project. Norma tells us more about St Mary's and the aspirations of their building project;
"We believe the church and its buildings should be a resource for all people, every day and not just for a couple of hours on Sundays.By completing our restoration and building project, St Mary's will become a much-needed and sustainable gathering place for people of all ages and backgrounds.
We will provide (either directly or through partnership with other groups) a variety of services (in all senses of the word!) and activities in a welcoming space where people can meet, talk, discuss, plan, dream, play, create, worship - all the things which make life better, especially for those who are new to the village, have become isolated or anxious, or whose ability to travel to the nearest shop or post office is limited. "
"We hope that as we become better known and trusted (particularly by those who did not previously have contact with St Mary's), we will also be able provide appropriate spiritual, pastoral and social support.
Apart from the pub (for which we are very grateful!) the village has no shop, post office or large meeting space and is not on a bus route, so life can be difficult - and became more so over the past year, which just underlined how important this project is. "Building up trust is important - 'no-one cares what you know until they know that you care' as the saying goes, so this is a long-term project, and we can't wait to see what will emerge as a result. "Norma hopes that they will be able to mark the re-opening of St Mary's with a service during Advent, but there are plans for a special service of celebration during Epiphany, which Norma says seems appropriate as the project will underline God's presence in and love for the whole community. Reflecting on the future of St Mary's, now that they have been awarded their Development Fund grant, Norma says,
"I think it's important to say that this isn't an end - it's a beginning.Once the building work is completed and the church doors are open again, we can begin to put our plans in place and welcome people back into their church.
God willing, there will be lots more milestones on the journey, and we invite everyone to come and see how we are getting on!"
The next round of the Development Fund closes on 31 July.
The fund is open to all, but it is likely to be most helpful to parishes that have limited financial resources to invest in missional activity.
Apply now.