Reordering

There was a proposal to remove the pews from the side aisles, with a view to replacing them in due course with new seats. In the meantime there were some plastic seats in the church, which could be placed in the side aisles when a large congregation was expected. The Chancellor was concerned that no detailed proposals had been presented in respect of replacement chairs. He granted a faculty for the removal of the side aisle pews, subject to conditions that the existing plastic chairs should not be left in the side aisles when not needed, and that the petitioners should by the end of 2019 put forward detailed proposals for replacement chairs.

Re-ordering proposals included the provision of a meeting room (with glass front); servery and toilet facilities; a gallery above the proposed meeting room; an upgrading of the heating and lighting installations; and moving both the font and war memorials to new locations within the Church to accommodate the works. The guidelines in Re St. Alkmund Duffield [2013] were considered. A Faculty was granted.

There was a major program of reordering, including an extension to the church, which would necessitate moving the font. The Chancellor granted a faculty, notwithstanding that the font would no longer be as near to the principal entrance as it could otherwise conveniently be.

The Parochial Church Council (PCC) petitioned to remove the remaining century-old pews from the Grade II listed church to create flexible seating for wider community use. The proposal included replacing pews in the nave with heavy wooden chairs and adding 100 lightweight, stackable chairs for occasional use. Timber from some pews would be repurposed into a screen concealing stored chairs. The scheme also sought to relocate the fifteenth-century font from the southeast corner to a position opposite the main entrance, restoring its traditional symbolic placement. Three individuals objected, arguing that removing pews would damage the church’s character and waste funds. Because the proposed upholstered seating contravened ChurchCare Guidance, the Chancellor referred the matter to the Church Buildings Council (CBC), which supported flexible seating but warned against upholstery. The petitioners justified the upholstery choice on practical and aesthetic grounds. Applying the principles from Re St Alkmund, Duffield [2012], the Chancellor found no harm to the church’s historical or architectural significance. The upholstery concerns were satisfactorily addressed, and the font move was reversible. Accordingly, the Chancellor granted the faculty as requested.

The Faculty Petition requested authority for a major re-ordering, to include moving the middle section of the rood screen and replacing of all the pews with stacking chairs. Faculty refused for moving the middle section of the rood screen, but Faculty granted for all other works, including the replacement of the pews with chairs. Although there were several objections, and the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings and the Victorian Society were parties opponent, the Chancellor was able to determine the matter by written representations.

Various items of reordering were proposed, including the replacement of the pews and pew platforms with high quality pew benches and a new stone floor with under-floor heating. The Victorian Society objected to the removal of the red and black machine made quarry tiles in the central aisle. There were also reservations from consultees regarding whether the ledger memorial stones in the nave floor should remain where they were, as part of the new scheme, or be moved elsewhere. The Chancellor granted a faculty for all the works, including the removal of the Victorian quarry tiles, subject, to the ledger stones remaining in their pre-reordering positions.

A faculty was sought for the disposal of: 4 short free-standing modem oak pews (circa 1967); 3 desks; a portable altar and communion rail;  2 old 'Glastonbury' style sanctuary chairs; a wooden cross; 2 wooden candlesticks; 11 standards and their metal wall fixings. The Diocesan Advisory Committe and the Church Buildings Council both supported the disposals. The Chancellor decided that none of the items was a "church treasure", which would justify him in holding a formal hearing. Faculty granted.

The Rector and Churchwardens sought permission to remove two pews from the front of the nave, to create a larger performance area, and four pews from the back of the nave, to provide a children's area. The proposals had been trialled under an archdeacon's licence for temporary reordering. After the period of the licence expired, the reordering remained in place without lawful authority. The petitioners also wished to replace the pews with chairs with blue upholstery, which had already been purchased. The Chancellor granted a faculty for twelve blue upholstered chairs to replace the front two rows of pews only. He indicated that if a further faculty was sought for more blue upholstered chairs, he would not be minded to grant one unless a more suitable colour was chosen and the existing chairs were reupholstered in the same colour.

Faculty granted for removal of Victorian choir stalls and replacement with light oak, upholstered choir pews, which would have the flexibility to be used for services in the chancel for small congregations.

Two matters were before the Chancellor: (1) an application for a confirmatory faculty in respect of a sound system installed without faculty in 1997; (2) an application by the Archdeacon for a restoration order in respect of lighting installed in the west porch in 2015 without faculty. The Chancellor's decisions were as follows: (1) faculty to be granted for the sound system, subject to conditions, including the replacement of the old sound speakers with new speakers in different locations; (2) a decision on the application for a restoration order in respect of the lighting to be deferred for 36 days, to allow time for a faculty petition to be presented.