Yahoo News Historic North Tyneside church to improve facilities with community grant
A historic church in North Tyneside is set to improve its facilities thanks to a community grant.
St John's Church in Killingworth is undertaking a major building improvement using the £1,000 grant from the Banks Community Fund.
The Grade II listed building will have a new kitchen and bathroom installed in the building, alongside a new entrance and more storage areas being created. The church’s listed organ is also set to be refurbished.
The church is used by a range of community groups, but doesn’t currently have its own kitchen and bathroom facilities, with visitors required to use a separate church hall. A fundraising campaign is ongoing, and it has now been boosted by the grant.
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The church committee is continuing to look for further funding, with a view to start building work in spring of next year, and it is hoping that the new facilities will encourage more people to use the building in the future. The church hosts events and activities for local schools, as well as rehearsals and concerts from the Killingworth Community Choir and the Backworth Brass Band.
Angela Henderson, a warden at St John’s Church and chair of the project group, said: "Our aim with this project is to make the church even more of a hub for community life than it already is, and to maximise the number of local people and groups who’re making use of what we offer.
"The historic nature and layout of the building makes carrying out the work that we need to do quite complex, but we think the difference that it will make will mean it’s well worthwhile in the end.
"Fundraising for work of this scale is a considerable undertaking, but we’ve had a very positive response so far and are grateful to all those people, organisations and businesses, like the Banks Group, who are choosing to support this important community project.
"We’re hoping to start work by next spring and can’t wait to be able to share our new facilities with the local community."
