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St Mary's is a spiritual haven
It is a holy place at the heart of the High Street, where people can go to pray or just to sit with God in the quietness. Many people who do not attend church on Sundays still value the opportunity to conic into St Mary's during the week. It is a special place. Whatever we do to develop St.Mary's, it will remain a spiritual haven.
St Mary's is a place of prayer
The midweek celebration of Holy Communion has an important place in the team ministry's life. Other acts of worship take place there during the year, including regular prayer meetings and youth worship events. These are vital to the spiritual life of the town as well as to the Christian community. Whatever we do to develop St Mary's will enhance the experience of worshipping there.
St Mary's is adaptable
Over the centuries, each generation has carefully adapted the interior of the church for its own uses. Old photographs and prints bear witness to this. St Mary's looks very different today from the St Mary's of 100 years ago. What is clear is that the changes made have always been carefully thought out and well executed, and we want to continue in that tradition.
The needs of worshippers in St Mary's have evolved. Careful thought needs to be given as to how we can build on the work of past generations .
St Mary's is a place for the people of Billericay
Suitably adapted, the church could be an ideal setting for concerts, exhibitions and a wide range of public events and community occasions. For this to be made possible, considerable work will be needed in order to make the space more flexible and to provide appropriate heating and lighting.
Whatever we do to develop St Mary's will be carefully thought out and well executed, to the glory of God
St Mary's could be a place for young people
The High Street has plenty of pubs and restaurants, but few places where the town's under-18’s can go legally.
The church's position makes it ideal as a venue for events for these young people. Our youth work office is already based at St Mary's, and a series of excellent youth events has taken place there, including 'Inferno' and '24/7'. We want to build on this and to see St Mary's become a regular venue-of-choice for Billericay's young people,
Doing nothing isn't an option
Any building needs constant maintenance, and this costs money. To 'earn its keep', St Mary's needs to be used. Thousands of pounds will be needed for repairs over the next few years. Part of the work of the Friends will be to enable the redevelopment of St Mary's so that it can be a special place for future generations to use and enjoy. If we do nothing, St Mary's will deteriorate very quickly.
Redevelopment: Following best practice
We have all seen poor examples of redevelopment. Nevertheless, there are some excellent examples of successful schemes for us to take as our models, including Chelmsford Cathedral, which underwent a very successful redevelopment in the 1980s to make it the bright, airy cathedral that we know and love.
We can learn from the cathedral, and from many other similar schemes that have been carried out in the past 30 years.
As we go down this road, great care will be taken to ensure that the final result is as with the cathedral aesthetically pleasing and honouring to God. The Friends will play a major part in this.
The Friends of St Mary Magdalen's
This new group been set up to support the care and upkeep of our magnificent church. Today we have, more than any other generation, the technology and materials to aid restoration and conservation works. Such skills and materials however, do not come without a price. It is the aim of The Friends to help raise the funds to support the ongoing task of repair, development and renewal.
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