Planning denied for church that called villagers 'evil'

A church that called villagers "evil-doers" for opposing its plans for a new hall has seen its application rejected.

St Leonard's Parochial Church Council in Chesham Bois, in Buckinghamshire, wanted to demolish its church hall and replace it with a "new multi-functional parish centre" to accommodate up to 275 people.

However, the application was refused by Buckinghamshire Council's planning committee after more than 250 objections from local residents.

The church said it was “disappointed” with the decision and “will be taking time to consider their comments” and its “next steps”.

In August, Wendy Clow, the wife of the church's rector Laurie Clow, said in a sermon that those who opposed the plans were "evil-doers, the enemy and mutilators of the flesh".

She also claimed that God had commanded the congregation to rise up and "go on the offensive".

Plans for the church hall, on Glebe Way, included a cafe, day nursery building, replacement rectory with detached garage, two outbuildings to provide a prayer room and substation, and bike storage.

The applicant argued that the existing parish centre was "coming to the end of its life" and, alongside the main church building, was not large enough to accommodate the "growing congregation" in the village between Chesham and Amersham.

The proposal for 90 car parking spaces was one of the main sources of anger for those objecting, said the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

Among them was Dr Gordon Mousinho, who questioned the need for "such a large worship centre for such a small congregation... the traffic chaos and subsequent pollution will be horrendous".

A previous plan put forward by St Leonard's to redevelop the site was rejected in January 2021, and dismissed at appeal in April 2022.

Conservative local ward councillor David King said he was concerned by the huge scale of the church's proposals.

He also questioned the motives of the Jesus Ministry church group, which pledged to "overcome the Evil One", and counted St Leonard’s rector among its main UK leaders.

"This is a full-scale commercial conference centre hiding behind the guise of a parish centre," said Mr King.

"I would say almost without exception, everyone would support a similar development to the existing parish centre [but] in scale."

In a statement to the LDRS, the church said: "We consulted with the community and listened closely to their feedback, which resulted in the decision to significantly reduce the development in size while keeping its main community enhancing components."

Regarding the sermon in August, a spokesperson added: "At the time we apologised unreservedly for the offence caused to members of our community, by the sermon.

“The parish church has sat at the heart of the community for over 800 years, and we are called to love, bless and pray for everyone in the village."

They added that it was "common to preach messages based on the rich imagery we find in the Bible" and that "sometimes in scripture more is said than is literally meant".

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