Recent changes

Reordering 1999 - 2004

In 1999 a small group met to decide what should be done to commemorate the millennium and at the same time the Quinquennial, the formal inspection of the structure of the church, was held. In addition we were about to celebrate the 150^th anniversary of the foundation of the church in 2003. This was an ideal opportunity for the church to look at itself critically from all sorts of points of view. One aspect was how to make the physical presence of the church building more meaningful and more of a focal point in the community as a whole. The building is, of course, used for worship and is available for prayer for the community at any time during the week but it was felt that we could make the building more user-friendly and accessible as part of our celebration of the Millennium and our 150^th anniversary.

The heating of the church needed renewing, a toilet for the disabled was required and the kitchen needed to be refurbished to allow for more comprehensive catering support for the events and functions to be held in the church. Space was a major criteria as the groups of people who used the church for concerts and plays were put off coming because of lack of space at the front of the church and, from a day-to-day point of view, the back of the church was cluttered with redundant pews and tables. In addition the grand piano was in need of major refurbishment and the exterior of the church including the notice boards needed attention. Faculties from the Diocese would be required for all this work

After a lot of thought and consultation it was decided that we could not hope to support all these projects at once because of the cost implications and also the sheer logistics of the work. It was decided that the major recommendations of the Quinquennial would be carried out first, linked to some of the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act. So the first work to be carried out was the repairs to the roof and external decoration concurrent with the replacement of the heating boiler. In addition a handrail was provided for the church path from the main road to the main church door. This involved significant fundraising which was to continue for four years.

After the successful completion of that phase, the removal of the surplus pews at the back of the church, the removal of the pews on two sides of the baptistry, the replacement of the two external notice boards and the creation of a bookcase and table using material from the redundant pews was the next project. A lot of this was carried out by the self-help of the parishioners with some generous donations for materials and for the manufacture of notice boards and the bookcase.

This home-grown talent manifested itself in all sorts of ways, carpentry in replacing the baptistry seat grills, staining the bookcase and table and re-fixing the flooring where it was coming loose. Perhaps the major self-help effort was the skilful production of the communion rail kneelers and the subsequent extra kneelers and seat cushion. They rightly hold pride of place in the church and have attracted admiration and praise.

We celebrated the 150^th Anniversary without the full completion of all our ideas because of financial considerations. We decided we could not commit to any major works without the knowledge that we had funds to meet the cost. We were not prepared to go into our reserves to any great degree. By November 2003 it was clear that we had raised sufficient money through our own extensive and exhausting fund-raising efforts and generous donations from friends of the church to consider work in 2004. We were hopeful for funds from the Neighbourhood Forum and the South Lakeland District Council and we had been advised that the Diocesan Pastoral Fund was a possible source of funding. We also applied for a Lottery grant and to another large fund that was known to give grants for Arts projects.

In the event we obtained grants from the Neighbourhood Forum, the Frieda Scott Trust and from the Diocesan Pastoral Fund. We were also fortunate in having the grand piano refurbishment paid for by a bequest. Our application to the Lottery was unsuccessful but there was a contingency plan for this which was put into effect.

The work continued outside church, with all the wooden seats being stripped down and restained. They now look greatly improved and will be protected from the weather.

Time has also been spent in the garden, weeding and putting in new plants to provide a colourful display in summer.

Also outside, two new noticeboards have been erected, half the cost of which was born by a generous donation.

In May 2004 work started on the toilet and the kitchen and the movement of the radiators and pipes in the church. This was carried out by O’Connell and Bean who had installed the new heating boilers. Lloyd Saunders of Saunders and Sons was selected by tender process to carry out the main works which was completed on time and on budget. This is the more remarkable because when the building work started a serious defect was found in the roof over the toilet and kitchen which was the cause of the unsightly damp that we suffered in the old facilities. This has been rectified.

We are very grateful to Lloyd for his support in this project in many ways, not least in his helping us reduce our costs by giving us discounts that should have accrued to the builders. We must not forget those who helped by moving pews, repairing and re-staining the newly exposed floorboards, and redecorating the meeting room once all the work was complete. We are also very grateful to Colin Milner for taking the pews and, after skilful modification, selling them for the benefit of the fabric fund.

We have now finished the projects that had their origins in 1999. We have been fortunate that so many people have been prepared to give their time and talent to either raise money or carry out some of the physical work. We are grateful to all those who have helped in any way, especially to those who have been generous and have preferred to remain anonymous. We have achieved all the aims that the PCC agreed and now have a church, which has more useable space for both worship and concerts, and the like. It has a toilet suitable for the disabled and a much more user-friendly kitchen. Over the coming months we need to advertise our new facilities and encourage people to use them, thus ensuring that the Parish Church is a focal point in Grange.

Over the next month our social committee are inviting residents from Hampsfell Grange, Strand Court, Crown Hill, Yewbarrow Lodge and Grayrigge Court to come to the church for a cup of tea in the meeting room and look at the improvements that have been made. All will be very welcome.