Chapeltown’s Holy Rosary Church’s newly refurbished Community Room is now back in regular use, thanks to parishioner fundraising and several generous grants!
Fittingly, used for the first time after this year’s First Holy Communion Mass, the Community Room’s facilities once more host the popular weekly coffee mornings and other activities including the Table Tennis Club, a weekly Food Pantry run by Catholic Care, the Faith and Light group and various meetings of the Eritrean Community. There is already something for everyone to get involved in, and the church looks forward to hosting more regular activities both for the parish and wider community.
Patience and confidence have been key along this two-year journey, as together the parish has navigated the challenges of rising costs and supply chain issues affecting so many building projects in recent times. Perhaps these challenges have made us even more grateful for the end result!
The Albert Gubay Charitable Foundation were the first to multiply the efforts of parishioners with a grant of £56,423. The Benefact Trust also granted £28,050 from their Community Impact Grant Scheme. As costs for building projects escalated, the National Churches Trust who had already awarded a very generous £10,000, included the Holy Rosary in their ‘Last Chance Churches Appeal’, and blessed us with a further £20,000. Our thanks are also extended to the many other grant funders mentioned below and to the parishioners and fundraisers.
Back in the 1980s the Holy Rosary Church, which has no Parish Hall, initially created the Community Room by sub-dividing the building to make a large space at the back. This has always been influential in creating a strong community feel at the church – but nearly 40 years later, the future of the much-loved Community Room was in jeopardy! The toilets and kitchen were almost unusable, and increased usage by smaller groups became a constant reminder of the inefficient and costly heating system which needed to be turned on well in advance – and unhelpfully required the whole church to be heated! Access also presented challenges, particularly for external groups or those with mobility issues.
Although at first the scale of the new, clean and ‘green’ refurbishment required seemed overwhelming, the concerted efforts of parishioners attracted the attention of numerous grant funders, generating £189k. A legacy left by a former parishioner and further significant private donations were also key to making the project financially viable – and our thanks go to everyone who has helped restore this important resource to its former role as a vibrant hub for both the Catholic and wider communities across Chapeltown.
A formal opening of the Community Room is planned for late 2024 – more details to follow in due course!
HR & LC - Holy Rosary Community Room Before and After Photos
With grateful thanks to all our grant funders!
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