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Present Day

An overview of the current church site

Bingham Methodist Church

Bingham Methodist ChurchThe original Chapel was built in 1818 with a schoolroom/hall in 1898, a parlour in 1931, a front porch in 1967 and a new meeting room and rear extension in 1981. This development led to a mix of architectural styles rather than coherent premises. In July 2005, English Heritage advised the Minister for Culture, Media and Sport that the building "...lacks the necessary architectural significance to merit listing". (Appendix B). The Secretary of State accepted this advice.

Part of the building is used as a shop selling Fairtrade goods and crafts from developing countries, with access onto a pedestrian area opposite the Health Centre and Library, very close to the main car parks. Because of its location (see Appendix C), it is a natural focus for the citizens of the town as they go about their daily business and in their personal and leisure time at weekends.

Because of the limitations of the building and its ageing structure, there has been considerable discussion for some years about its future. It fails to meet current building and health and safety regulations. A working party, set up in 1997, came up with three options, based upon the need for a more flexible and dynamic worship area and facilities to reach out to the community more effectively.

Consideration was given to selling this prime town centre site and rebuilding on the outskirts of the town. However, our vision is to be within the community and for this purpose the present site is excellent as a 'hub' location.

At the Church Annual Meeting in April 2001, the members supported overwhelmingly option 3 and agreed to work under the title of Bingham REconstruction And Development, or BREAD.

Bingham has no community hall. With its central location and variety of accommodation, the Bingham Methodist Centre has become a natural focus for community activity and is in use seven days a week. Three Christian communities share the premises, the Methodist congregation, the Roman Catholic Church in Bingham and Joiners. As well as a venue for elections, 47 different church and community groups take advantage of the facilities. These include...