Friends of St Mary's

St Marys church picture

Brief history of the church

There was a church on this site by 1090, when records show that it was given to the Priory of St Pancras at Lewes, including a levy of tithes to support the church and clergy. The present church was classified in 1987 on the statutory list of buildings of special architectural or historic interest as Grade 1 (the highest listing).

 

The Parish Registers date back to 1539; the originals are now housed at the West Sussex Record Office in Chichester. There have been seven key stages in the building and development of the present church and its surroundings, with the earliest being what is now the South Aisle and Resurrection Chapel in the late 13th or early 14th centuries. From “The Parish Church, St Mary, Balcombe”

The Trust

Providing this support to the community is costly (around £60,000 a year to run St Mary’s) and the church building has undergone many repairs and facelifts over the centuries. One of the most recent was two years ago when many parts of the ceiling needed replacing and the people of the village went out of their way to contribute to the funding of the repairs.


Rather than just being reactive to these situations, and to ensure that the church can continue to provide the central home to the village, a Trust has been established to set aside money purely for repairs and upkeep of the St Mary’s church building - to cover the inevitable rainy days. The Trustees represent both the Parochial Church Council and the Parish Council as the church building is there for everyone - supporting both those who regularly worship and those who only occasionally attend.


The type of support varies. For example, the Trust has recently contributed £5000 to the repairs of the choir vestry roof and we are currently working towards a number of objectives, including an upgrade of the lightening conductors.


If you would like any more information about the Trust or to contribute to the upkeep of the church, please feel free to contact Jeff Thompson (jeff@jeff-thompson.com) or make enquiries at The Rectory in Balcombe.