HISTORY

In 1955, Bishop of Coventry, Neville Gorton, visited this area and expressed his deepest concern for the spiritual welfare of the growing population of the new estate of Allesley Park.  The area was originally part of Allesley parish, but Bishop Gorton had a radical vision that a new parish should be formed and a church should be built to form community where there was none, and to reach out with God’s love to all the people who lived within this new parish.  This would be one of his final wishes – he died just a week later. 

In February 1956, in announcing this new church community, the Rector of All Saints, Allesley, Rev. F.W. Moyle, commented in the Allesley Parish News, “This is a colossal challenge! It means, if we are to answer it to the full, that every man-jack of us must think and pray and give to the point of sacrifice.”  The people of Allesley would bear a great financial burden to ensure the new church building would be built.  They responded to the challenge, and while the fledgling congregation initially met at St. Christopher’s School, the new church building was consecrated on 26 March 1960.  At the ceremony (in pouring rain), the Bishop of Coventry declared this “A remarkable and extremely hopeful beginning – you are going to build a family of fighters like Neville Gorton"

Over 50 years on, although much has changed, our mission is still the same.  We are still called to work out what it means to be a church community committed to “Sharing God’s Love” in Allesley Park and Whoberley; we are still called to “think and pray and give to the point of sacrifice” – “every man jack of us”; and we are still called to be a “family of fighters”, prepared to do everything possible to spread God’s kingdom here.