Members of the congregation at Sandown’s Christ Church celebrated the re-opening of the Lych gate, following extensive repairs and replacement of the structure believed to have been in place at the Church since it opened in 1845.
Rev Mark Williams said:
“We are really delighted to see Lych Gate restored to its former glory and it is a gateway for family events like weddings and christenings. Thanks to all that have enabled the project to happen this year, including the Town Council.”
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The Lych Gate was restored using Oak sourced locally, working with the Church of England Diocesan Advisory Committee, local builders Plenty Construction and Sandown Town Council, who contributed to the project.
Town Mayor Alex Lightfoot added:
“This improvement, along with the repairs to the clock, introduction of a warm space, and other partnership projects benefitting the local community, reflects the positive outcomes that continued co-operation and collaboration between the Council and the Church can achieve.”
Rev Williams concluded:
“We look forward to further joint projects in the coming months and longer term, with the Lych Gate and Clock restoration enhancing the gateway to the Town, an example of what can be achieved.”
Looks to be a really nice job. Have an old engraving of that church when it was surrounded by fields and sheep.
Nice to see a bit of traditional carpentry.
Great achievement, but, not wishing to put a dampener on this, why did Sandown Town Council contribute?
Sandown’s Council Tax and Local Precept increased exponentially this last year, despite a multitude of service cuts.
The Church of England in not poor, in fact it is VERY wealthy, so why dies it always seem to come down to the local congregation/population to fork out for these things?!