Today, M.P. for Romford, Andrew Rosindell, in the company of the local Brooklands Ward Councillors, Roger Westwood, Viddy Persaud, and Robert Benham, attended a meeting with the Chapel of Courage, Mawney Road, to discuss the challenges the church faces going following its lease crisis earlier this Summer.
In June, the Chapel of Courage, which leases St. John’s Church, Mawney Road, from the Diocese of Chelmsford, was notified that its lease would be up later this year. With the Diocese wanting to sell, the church were given the offer of either buy now or face eviction. The Chapel, which had been saving contributions from members of the congregation for some years with the intention of buying the property, did not at that point have the funds necessary to buy the building.
Under pressure from Andrew, the congregation, and others, the Diocese later relented, but not without causing considerable distress to many church attendees, who feared their Church would soon become homeless.
The Chapel’s lease period in Mawney Road, however, has not been without incident. In recent months, local residents had expressed concern about the congregations spilling out into the street, noise after hours, and the Chapel’s offering shelter to the homeless. With promises to address these concerns, the Chapel had their lease extended by the Diocese into the foreseeable future.
On Sunday, Andrew and the local Councillors attended worship at the Chapel in the morning, followed by a meeting in the afternoon. Their meeting addressed the challenges that the church faces going forward if it is to retain its lease on the property. To that end, the Chapel has plans for financial sustainability and has already converted one of its buildings into a nursery; and plans to do more community outreach, in the form of volunteering schemes, free gardening services for local residents, and companionship schemes for local elderly residents.
Following the meeting, Andrew said:
"I am delighted that the Chapel of Courage has been saved from eviction. In recent years, this church has managed to build a strong congregation with a fantastic sense of community, and it would have been a huge shame to have seen it go. We should protect our beautiful and historic local buildings, and the worst outcome in this situation would have been for the Church to have been sold off only for it to be converted into yet more flats. Myself, Robert, Viddy and Roger had an inspiring meeting with the Pastor and the members of the Chapel and it was so good to hear about all the plans they have to reach out to the wider community in the coming years.”