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Church arts centre building work blessed by bishop

Diocese of Peterborough Church with video screen in centre, above altar (on which stands a wooden cross). To the right, the vicar with short dark hair is standing in front of a music stand wearing a white cassock and a green stole. The bishop with long dark hair, wearing a white cassock and a yellow and red stole, is setting at a table in the centre. There are various musicians seated behind them and audience members in front Diocese of Peterborough
The Bishop of Peterborough (centre) blessed the building work at St Andrew's

A bishop has given her blessing to a major refurbishment project at a church that doubles as an arts centre.

The Bishop of Peterborough, the Right Reverend Debbie Sellin, led a service at St Andrew's, Kettering, over the weekend.

The church is in the final stages of a £300,000 refurbishment project designed to improve the building as a place of worship and a performance venue.

The bishop said the church was now more able "to engage with the people of Kettering through the arts and through joy and laughter".

The Victorian church became Kettering's only arts centre in 2011.

Since then, it has hosted comedians such as Shappi Khorsandi, Rosie Jones, Milton Jones and Mark Thomas.

The broadcaster, author and former pop star Richard Coles is the venue's patron and took part in the first performance at the centre once the refurbishment work had progressed enough to let the building reopen.

Diocese of Peterborough Richard Coles with short dark hair and glasses, smiling while holding a microphone and wearing a black sweater. The Reverend Tom Houston, with short dark hair and a grey jacket, sits opposite. Books by Mr Coles are on display in the foreground, and a Waterstones logo is visible behindDiocese of Peterborough
Broadcaster and author the Reverend Richard Coles took part in the first event after the centre reopened, with the Reverend Tom Houston

The redevelopment has included a new parquet floor, seating, lighting and AV equipment along with underfloor heating.

The Diocese of Peterborough said the work would "enable the church to host events in the winter months which had previously been impossible due to the chilly nature of the church building, and crucially helps them meet their environmental targets".

The stage is now fully accessible so all clergy and performers should be able to present from it.

Diocese of Peterborough Church interior, showing stained glass window at the East End. The floor has been removed in the foreground, revealing soil beneath. A man is sitting on a yellow digger. Sun is streaming through the windows to the leftDiocese of Peterborough
The refurbishment was designed to make the building function more effectively as both a church and a performance venue

Bishop Sellin said: "When our churches seek to be relevant to our communities, we naturally become welcoming spaces where the love of Jesus can be shared.

"With this restoration project, St Andrew's is now more able to engage with the people of Kettering through the arts and through joy and laughter.

"I am delighted that this will enable St Andrew's to continue to be the heart of the community for long into the future."

The Reverend Tom Houston, vicar of St Andrew's, said: "Since Covid, we have focused on access and inclusivity for our local community, putting on concerts with local music schools, installations from local art groups and championing local performers.

"We are starting to see congregation growth through this community engagement, which is what is at the core of our presence here."

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