AN EMMBROOK church proudly celebrates its 50th anniversary this year.
St Nicholas Church, part of the Parish of St Paul’s, Wokingham, will hold a series of community events and services during 2026 to mark its half century.
Known affectionately by parishioners as St Nick’s, the church meets in Emmbrook Village Hall, where the first of its celebration events, a community Showcase, will be held.
This will offer the borough an opportunity to discover the range of community groups that regularly meet at and use Emmbrook Village Hall.
Susannah Riley from St Nicholas Church, said: “As a church we’re very much embedded in the Embrook community, and very pleased to be working in partnership with Emmbrook Village Hall for this first event of our anniversary year.”
A number of groups, all of whom hire the hall, will be chatting about their activities at the Community Showcase, with the church providing tea and cakes.
With the building of the Joel Park and Flagons estates, Embrook expanded in the 1960s and early 1970s.
Families with young children moved into the area, and in 1976 a church plant from St Paul’s was launched to meet local needs and to serve the growing community.
Community priest David West led informal child-friendly services in Emmbrook’s WI Hall, and despite not having its own building (or even at that time its own name) the church grew rapidly.
Its large number of children asked for it to be named after their patron saint (the original Santa Claus and the primary patron saint of children) St Nicholas.
Eventually outgrowing its original home, the church moved first to Emmbrook Junior School in 1985, and then, following its refurbishment, to Emmbrook Village Hall in 1996, where its current parish priest is Sam Tanna-Korn.
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St Nick’s is much loved by the congregation who say of it: “It’s very much the heart of the Emmbrook community.
“Sunday morning sees our village hall transformed into a place of worship…and afterwards it’s packed away back into a cupboard.”
And: “It’s a very special place, where everyone has something valuable to contribute, whatever their background or experience of church.”
In June the church is planning an afternoon of table games, tea and cakes, and in December it will hold a birthday celebration party, with special guest the Bishop of Reading, Rt Revd Mary Gregory.
Everyone is invited to the Community Showcase.
“It’s a chance to come and chat to local groups and people who use the village hall week by week,” said Susannah.
“We hope that through conversations, and over refreshments, more people will be encouraged to take part in Emmbrook activities.
“And who knows, the event may even spawn ideas for new groups and activities.”
The Community Showcase will take place at Emmbrook Village Hall, on Saturday, March 21, from 2pm until 4pm.
St Nick’s meets at the hall on Sundays at 11am.
For information, visit: spauls.co.uk and emmbrookvillagehall.org.uk
