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The Church of England began a period of fundamental change in the late 1960s and this continues. Matters, both social and theological, which had previously never been mentioned were openly discussed and changes were made to almost every aspect of church life. The major break came when synodical government was adopted in the 1960s and a strong lay influence flooded the thinking and practices of the church. New translations of the Bible, some good, some bad, flooded onto the
market and there was a period of experimentation with the liturgy which culminated in the adoption of the Alternative Service Book of 1980. Relations with other churches improved dramatically to the extent that Pope John Paul II was able to join the Archbishop of Canterbury in worship in Canterbury Cathedral, an event which would have been unthinkable only ten years earlier.
Waves of immigration brought new religions to
Purley saw a period of rapid growth with the population rising from 1000 in 1951 to 4000 in 1981. The proportion attending church fell substantially, but there was still enough of a rise in attendances to make the 1870 church inadequate for the purpose and to justify a major expansion. Services became much more informal, which did not go down too well with many of the older members of the congregation, But new families brought new ideas and the church flourished, taking on a decided evangelical flavour.
It is however much too soon to judge the long term effect of these trends and this had better be left to the judgement of history.
David Evans was brought up a Baptist in the Welsh town of
One of his first changes was to stop taking collections during the service and to ask people to put the money in the plate as they came into church. This was followed in 1977 by a stewardship campaign which had a dramatic effect on the church income.
Mrs Lehive left a bequest to the church which was used to purchase a second hand piano. 1976 also saw many other bequests including three stoles, new carpets, books and a new chalice.
There were shock waves around the parish when he announced that the pews were to be removed and replaced by free standing chairs. The old pews were sold and sturdy good looking wooden chairs with rich red padding were obtained. The new comfort that they gave soon overcame any misgivings and longings for the old benches.
When
By the time David Evans arrived around £30,000 had been
raised but the practical difficulties of having church and hall on different
sites began to be recognised. At the same
time the village was spreading back towards the church as the
The Parochial Church Council tried to negotiate the
acquisition of land in Purley Marina and alongside
Eventually the architect Richard Perkins was approached to consider the problem and his revolutionary proposal to rebuild the church was greeted at first with incredulity. However when parishioners saw his sketches and rough designs they realised what a tremendous opportunity was being presented. In a great surge of enthusiasm planning permission was sought and although there were many objections, almost all from outside the parish, consent was granted and work on the project could go ahead.
John Rothery was appointed project manager and all the other formalities and requirements like obtaining a diocesan faculty were overcome. The big worry was 'could the church afford it?' After intense debate it was decided to rely on faith and hope for charity. The enthusiasm was tempered by the good sense and financial acumen of the Church Treasurer, Tom Grundon and it was decided to go ahead, but only within the limits of available finance. A contract was signed with Messrs Clarke and Stone of Tilehurst for an outer shell which could be made weatherproof and work started in July 1982 under the supervision of
foreman Doug Giles.
Richard Perkin's design called for the church to be realigned along a north-south axis instead of east-west. The very unsatisfactory north aisle was to be demolished and a new octagonal hall constructed in its place, but extending some 35 feet further north. To the west of this hall was to be a kitchen and foyer with a new west door. The roof of the hall was to be built of intersecting timbers to form a most interesting pattern.
The organ was to be removed and the Norman arch filled in so that the vestry could be turned into two committee rooms one above the other and linked by a spiral staircase. To the north and east was to be constructed a new vestry with boiler room and toilets.
The old north porch was to be filled in with the west window from the north aisle to form a store room. The lych gate was to be moved about twenty feet north and a new car park constructed.
The walls were to be breeze blocks faced with pebble flints to match as closely as possible the split flints of the 1870 building as the cost of facing them with split flints would have been prohibitive.
The roofs of the new buildings were to be hipped, except over the reset window in the foyer where there was to be a gable. The roof would be covered with an asbestos tile simulating slate. New plastic guttering and drain pipes would replace the old cast iron ones and new water, gas and electricity supplies would be provided, heating being converted from oil to gas.
One of the conditions of planning consent was that the archaeologists must be given a chance to explore before building could commence. The Trust for Wessex Archaeology however made it plain that they did not have the resources to mount a full scale excavation and the most they could do was to pay the odd visit to the site while the foundations were being dug. They suggested however that the people of Purley might like to have a go themselves. The rector agreed and so a project
was set up under the leadership of
Before building work could commence the area to the east and north of the church was fenced off together with the ground acquired for an extension to the car park which became the site office.
The first building was at the east end where a new vestry and toilet block was constructed. The 14th Century window in the old vestry was carefully removed and later rebuilt in the new foyer. The north door of the old vestry was blocked off as was the lancet window in the north wall of the sanctuary.
The foundations for the buildings were 4 foot deep trenches filled with concrete and when these were being dug even more bones emerged as did one other domed soakaway and two other more crudely built rectangular soakaways. The walls were built up from two thicknesses of breeze blocks, the outside ones being faced with pebbled flints or simulated limestone where they formed quoins.
By December 1982 roof timbers were being cut by carpenters
Ronald Herbert and his son Luke. A
scaffolding and plastic shield was constructed to protect the main hall over
the winter. By summer 1983 there was a
weatherproof shell as promised in the contract, but by then more money had
become available and gradually most of the other essential internal work was
completed in time for the dedication by the bishop of
Not all the plans of the architect were realised by the time of reopening, mainly because of lack of money. The kitchen was not quite built as planned to avoid interfering with graves. Over the next few years much more work was done to complete the scheme as money became available. The organ was eventually replaced by a computer organ and new prayer desks, a portable altar, altar rails and a portable pulpit were acquired.
Rather than the folding screens originally envisaged, heavy curtains were donated by John and Jean Rothery to screen off the old nave from the new hall. In fact for most purposes the old orientation was retained and the new hall used for worship purposes only when there was a special event calling for extra accommodation.
Many of the stones marking the graves of the Storer family had been removed to allow access to the site for heavy equipment and these were not replaced in their original sites, rather the headstones were grouped somewhat south of the graves as the area beneath which the graves were was used for new pathways leading to the new west door which became the main entrance. To the north and west of the new buildings retaining walls were built by Doug Fossey over a considerable period of time so that a new path could be built around the church.
In 1986 the font was moved from its former position near to the south door to a new baptistry on the ground floor of the tower as planned by the architect. There was great trepidation on account of the extreme age of the font but it survived the move quite happily. Beneath its former position was found a small soakaway which did not line up with the base, being about two feet further east, suggesting that the font had been moved slightly in 1870.
The Lych gate was not moved but new wrought iron gates were given by John Sykes and the roof was restored.
The tomb of Thomas Canning was moved from its site blocking the way into the north part of the churchyard to a new location opposite the Lych gate. This was badly vandalised in August 1990. Other gravestones in the old churchyard were levelled to facilitate grass cutting.
The old lighting in the nave was adjudged dangerous and new lighting was installed which greatly enhanced the appearance of the old building. In 1988 exterior lighting was provided, at first with cables running from the church but by September permanent wiring and lighting columns were installed.
The car park was levelled and hoggin put down in 1986. The wall which had been broken down to provide access gradually crumbled away at the edges and had to be reinforced for safety reasons. This was almost completely rebuilt in September 1988 to provide new support for the Lych Gate.
After considerable protracted debate considerable internal remodelling was agreed in early 1988. The wall closing off the Norman Arch was demolished and a new smaller organ chamber was built to house the new electronic organ. The door between the old and new vestries was moved a few feet to the east where it was incorporated into a new screen wall which improved access to the toilets, by not requiring people to go into the vestry. Solid wooden screens and doors with inset glass were installed between the hall and old vestry and between the hall and vestibule. As a consequence the hatchway between the kitchen and vestibule was closed in and a new one built between the kitchen and the hall. The old and new vestries were carpetted and the ladder from the old vestry to the mezzanine was replaced by a flight of stairs.
Finally in 1989 the footpaths were paved and edged and attractive low level lighting installed.
David was appointed Rural Dean for the Bradfield Deanery at a time when there was a great shortage of clergy. Parishes were being combined and several were without an incumbent for several years. The living of Pangbourne was combined with those of Sulham and Tidmarsh in 1987.
On
Here the history ends. It is too early to write about the last few years as so much has happened and no perspective can yet be obtained. Mention of subsequent events will be made in some of the following sections which deal with particular aspects of church life.
Perhaps the main thing that can be said is that David Evan's rectorship has seen more profound change than that of any of his predecessors. Many of the changes he wrought himself, many resulted as a response to external pressures and challenges.
A tribute to his style of leadership can be seen in the way the parish coped during the inter-regnum. All the services have continued to be held, the church fabric is being cared for, church organisations continue to flourish. As one visiting priest observed - 'You don't really need a rector, you are far too well organised!'
The role of the church has dramatically changed. Its place in society and in the local community has changed. Can it rise to the challenges of the future?
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