Old church may be demolished
A LANDMARK church which was built in Northampton more than 90 years ago could be demolished to make way for a modern building.
Plans have been submitted to Northampton Borough Council to demolish the Broadmead Baptist Church in Broadmead Avenue, Eastfield.
The plans have been put forward because the current building is too small to cater for all the people who use it.
The development would see the current church knocked down and a modern, two-storey church and community building built in its place.
The church’s pastor, Adam Eakins, said: “The current building is barely adequate for its present purposes. It restricts the size of the congregation that can meet on Sunday mornings and the associated children’s groups. It also reduces the scope for developing new activities that would be of value to the local community.
“We hope that the end result of the project will be a building that is appropriate, not just for use as a church, but for the whole community.
“We want to develop somewhere that is warm and welcoming to all those within the Eastfield community and we really believe that this is an exciting opportunity to develop facilities which can be used by many people within the community for many years.”
Along with a space for worship, facilities which would be included in the new building include a nursery and a Money Advice Service.
The original church was built in the 1920s as a school room. It was originally planned to build a much larger church on the site, but because of the recession in the 1930s, that never happened.
Officials from Northampton Borough Council are due to decide whether the latest development plan for the site can go ahead by March.
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Wednesday 23 May 2012
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Comments
There are 5 comments to this article
Page 1 of 1
JMC82
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 06:24 PMI was married here and shall always have a fond memory of the old building, however I am so pleased to see the Church Thriving and look forward to seeing what the future holds.
mccoop
Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 07:04 PMIf the old church can be replaced for the good of Eastfield and the people who use it,then the plans need to go ahead.And the new building can be renamed?
MargaretPritchard
Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 04:41 PMThe church is name of Christ's followers, not a building. Christians have been told by Jesus to serve people as He did, so a building which is fit for this purpose is a welcome addition to any community. Broadmead Baptist church has grown in its service to the community with the excellent Samuels Nursery, the Money & Advice Centre, & young people's activities, so well done for submitting these plans which will enable the Christians there to worship together & serve the community in a properly designed modern building.
Shalom
Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 12:57 PMWhy should Church buildings have to "look" like church buildings ? It is what goes on inside those buildings that is important ! And there is an awful lot that goes on inside the buildings at Broadmead baptist ! A wonderful, outstanding nursery. A award wining money advice centre. Youth activities. Seniors lunches. The list goes on ! Church's, up and down this nation , are doing their best to show the love of God to a hurting nation. Why not come in and have a look ?
Finker
Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 11:43 AMThe new building looks nice enough but not sure it really looks like a church?
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