VISITORS were good at using their imaginations when they went to church recently.
As work at All Saints Church nears completions, members of the public were invited in to see the radical changes being made to the premises.
People were able to view the progress of the church’s SpaceForAll project, and chat with the project team, and the director and staff of the contractors, Borras Construction.
Although the finishing touches still need to be put in place, visitors were able to imagine how All Saints Church’s new space will look when the floor is finished, and the servery and all its facilities are installed.
The building, while remaining a place of worship, is to become a flexible venue for performances, concerts and conferences.
But by day it will also be an open café space where charities and community groups can hold meetings, and where members of the public can come inside to work, chat, and get warm.
More than 70 people came to the open day, including representatives from the Borough and Town Councils, funders and potential users.
These included members of self advocacy for adults with learning disability group CLASP, adult learning group WEA, South Berkshire Singers, trustees from More Arts, and Wokingham United Charity trustees.
Project manager, Anne King said: ” It was lovely to have everyone there, all together.
“People were really excited to see the potential of the new space, and above all, they were commenting on just how big it is.
“They were saying things to me like, ‘It will be great to be part of the activity here,’ ‘we’re looking forward to singing here,’ and ‘what a great space – I can just see it filled with an exhibition of local work.’
People shouldn’t have to imagine for much longer, though, because All Saints Church, Wokingham, hopes to open the doors to its new community space in Spring 2023.
For more information, and to support the project, visit: www.spaceforall.org.uk.
