Fernham Oxfordshire

Village news

HRH The Earl of Wessex opens village hall conversion in Fernham

His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex KG KCVO officially opened St. John’s Church and Fernham Village Hall on Thursday, 24 June. The Earl, who was accompanied by Mr Tim Stephenson, the Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire, met many of the villagers, and expressed great interest and enthusiasm in the project to convert the church into a space for both worshop and community activities.

The Rt. Rev. Stephen Cottrell, the Bishop of Reading, then gave a lively speech and blessed the building. The ceremony was followed by a wonderful lunch outdoors in beautiful weather, and Prof. Sir Clive Booth, the chairman of the Big Lottery Fund, gave a delightful speech on behalf of the guests.

The conversion of St. John’s Church, which took 6 years and cost a total of £250,000, has created a much-needed community centre for the 100-household village. The plan was spearheaded by villagers, who came together to form Project Inspire, a charitable trust, which raised the funds and now manages the building on a 10-year lease.

In addition to the internal conversion, a separate fundraising project run by churchwarden Charles Wickham raised a further £250,000 to completely replace the church roof.

Fundraising has begun for the Phase 2 plan to provide a small car park, with an estimated cost of £33,500. If the car park succeeds in receiving planning permission, it will enable Project Inspire to offer use of the facility to neighbouring communities.

Telling the conversion story

High Royal Highness met invited guests and villagers, many of whom were grouped together in 'teams' to tell the story of the project.

The roof conversion: Mr Charles Wickham, team leader; Mrs Elli Wickham; The Right Revd Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Reading; the Venerable Norman Russell, Archdeacon of Berkshire; the Revd Richard Hancock, vicar; Mr Andrew Townsend, architect; the Revd Anne Bell, curate; Mr Geoffrey Sheldon of English Heritage; Mr Charles Baker; Mr Andrew Sharland of Minerva Stone; and Mr Harry Barton, of Northmoor Trust.

Fundraising for internal conversion: Mr Stephen Flint, team leader; Mr Rob Wishart; Ms Nicola Young; Miss Esme Fletcher; Mr Bill Egginton; Mrs Jan Egginton; Master Sam Egginton; Sir Clive Booth, chairman of the Big Lottery Fund; Mr Philip Newbould of Oxfordshire Rural Community Council; Mr Kevin Brophy of Oxfordshire County Council's Youth Services; and Ms Fiona Danks, of Trust for Oxfordshire's Environment.

Building works for internal conversion: Mr Herbie Kay, team leader; Mr Ian Fletcher; Master Freddie Fletcher; Mr Tony Willis of AE Willis; Mr Roger Baker, Project Inspire architect; Mr Stuart Lawrence, carpenter; Mr Andrew Whiting, Project Inspire surveyor; Mr Henry Smith of AE Willis; and Mrs Mandy Wishart.

Activities in the combined church and hall: Ms Jayne Rice; Master Christopher Jones; Mr Peter Pearce; Mrs Claire Kay; Mr David Burke; Master Stanley Burke; Miss Renee Burke; Mrs Joyce Adams; Mrs Lin Sutherland; Mrs Joan Turner; Mr Godfrey Turner; Mr Peter Nunn and Mrs Kay Nunn.

Mr Brian Heathcote, the chairman of the Fernham parish meeting, also explained the project to district councillors Yvonne Constance, Alison Rooke and Beth Fleming.

Special thanks

Carillion's catering team at the Great Western Hospital provided a wonderful buffet to compliment the special day, with a variety of beautifully prepared dishes by award-winning chefs. The whole village and our many guests enjoyed seafood and duck dishes and a wonderful range of sandwiches, complimented by cold meats and salads, and followed by some very tempting sweets. Many thanks to Carillion for supporting the event so generously, and other previous events, such as Fernham's first Champagne Breakfast in 2006.

Special thanks to: Ms Emma Wilson, for handling the invitation list; Mr Ken Diccox, who ran security; Mr John Smith, who directed the parking of cars; Mrs Bridget Adams and Mr Martin Adams, who greeted guests; Mrs Joan Turner, Mrs Elli Wickham and Mrs Freda Dawes, who provided tea and homemade cakes, and Master Christopher Jones, for presenting a gift from the village to the Earl of Wessex.