Future of Top Church in Dudley to be discussed

To help preserve the church of St Thomas and St Luke in Dudley, known as Top Church, for future generations, the Diocese of Worcester was awarded the money to transform it into a ‘resourcing church’.

This will mean that the majority of the pews will be removed to ensure the church can become more flexible to match the needs of the community and support other churches.

The Archdeacon of Dudley, Nikki Groarke said parts of the church which are of historic interest will be retained but it would be necessary to 'modernise' the inside of the building to ensure it could continue to be used.

An open meeting will take place at noon on Saturday to give people an insight into some of the plans for the future of the building and to give them a chance to input before any final decisions are made. There will be a chance to view the plans for the removal of the majority of the pews.

The Archdeacon said: “Top Church is an iconic building and we want it to remain at the heart of Dudley town centre for many years to come. Although we’ll be keeping some of the original features, it’s essential to modernise the inside to ensure it is fit for the 21st Century.

"The alternative is to close the building and nobody wants to see that. I hope that as many people as possible will come to our open meeting so that we can involve the local community in our plans and find out more about what they love about the church.”

The Rev James Treasure said: “I am really looking forward to leading the resourcing church at Top Church and we’ve got exciting plans for its future and how it can serve the local community effectively. Top Church is 200 years old this year and we hope the changes we’re making will help make sure it’s still here for future generations – maybe even for another 200 years. Please do come along to find out more and how you can be involved in sharing the love of Jesus with the people of Dudley.”

As a 'resourcing church, it will offer a primarily contemporary style of worship, which has been proven to attract new people to faith.

Once established, it will be able to offer help and advice to other local churches to develop particular areas of their own mission and ministry.

The funding has come from the Church of England's Archbishops' Council and will also be used to transform All Saints’ Church in Worcester.

The official launch of the Top Church resourcing church is expected to take place in September 2019.

The meeting is open to everyone and refreshments will be provided.