The History of St Barnabas Church, Gorse Hill

Early Days

The first Anglican Church in Gorse Hill was an iron church erected in 1872. It was situated just off Cricklade Road opposite what is now Tydeman Street, where the Hreod Burna stream crossed under Cricklade Road. The chapel seated less than 120 people and was referred to as the “Gorse Hill Mission Church”. At this time Gorse Hill was not a parish in its own right, but was part of Stratton St. Margaret.

The church flourished and the services were well attended. In 1873 a school opened at the iron church, with 20 pupils, however, by 1877 foundations were being laid for a new school in what we now know as Avening Street. With the church building not being used as a school, other groups began meeting and more attention was paid to the choir and the Sunday school.

The New Church

As the area of Gorse Hill expanded and developed it was made a Conventional District, which meant that if a permanent parish church were to be built that Gorse Hill would become a parish in its own right. By 1883, when Revd. Philip Maddocks arrived in Gorse Hill as the curate of Stratton St. Margaret, a fund had already been set up for a new church.

Originally the new church was to be built on a site at the Cricklade Road end of Kembrey Street. However, when a survey was done it was decided that a site nearer what was becoming the hub of Gorse Hill would be better. Revd. Maddocks negotiated with Thomas Arkell and bought, for £250, the land upon which St. Barnabas now stands.

The foundation stone of the new church was laid on 4 October 1884 and the children, clergy and congregation processed from the old to the new church. First the nave and chancel were built and services began on 14 February 1885. The church was built of local Swindon stone with Bath stone facings. The pillars of the nave were built, with the clerestory windows above. The lower two-thirds of the exterior walls were temporary constructions built between the pillars with a window in the south wall for light. Today, it is easy to visualise the temporary outside doors that would have been either side of the font and the present door from the vestry to the chancel would have been an outside one.

The incomplete church was consecrated by the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol on St. Barnabas Day, 11 June 1886. It is interesting to note that there is no record of how, or when, or why the new church was dedicated to St. Barnabas. The new parish of St. Barnabas was eventually formed on 20 February 1890 and Revd. Maddocks was licensed on 26 April 1890 to “perform the Office of Minister or Perpetual Curate of the Church and newly constituted Chapelry of St. Barnabas, Gorse Hill, New Swindon.”

Continued Building

As the Sunday School still continued to meet at the old mission church, attention was next given to the construction of the Church Hall and the foundation stone was laid on 11 May 1889.

A Vicarage was soon built and once this was complete attention turned to completing the church. In 1894 the foundation stone for the south aisle was laid and in 1895 the temporary wall between this aisle and the nave of the church was removed. This new south aisle incorporated a small porch at the west end and vestries at the east end. In 1898 the north aisle was opened, complete with organ chamber. Outside there was a spirelet containing one small bell and the seating capacity was around 400. The interior of the church is lighted by seven double windows in the aisle and thirteen single windows in the clerestory. There are large trefoil windows at the east end over the alter, with a similar quatrefoil window at the west end. All the windows, with once exception, have lozenge shaped plain or tinted glass. The exception is the circular window in the north porch which depicts the Israelites crossing the Red Sea; it is possible that this window came from the old iron church. Over the years the interior of the church has been improved with gifts from the church members.

The church was still not complete, it had no tower and there were high expectations that this should be built. Construction commenced in 1909 but it was not until 1912 that the two-thirds of the tower, as it now stands, was completed. The outbreak of war in 1914 prevented any further building, although crockery purchased in 1909 for use in the church hall depicted the church will a full tower and spire.

St. Barnabas Today

The exterior of the church is much the same as in 1912 although the environs have altered somewhat. The original Vicarage was demolished in the mid 1970s due to age and a new Vicarage was built in 1981. The land between the west end of the church and the new vicarage, where the original vicarage stood, became a car park in 1975. In 1967 the local authority did substantial work on widening the road around the church. As a result of this the church lost a small garden area on Cricklade Road, with the new pavement alongside the east wall of the chancel. Some land was also lost on the corner of Ferndale Road and the churchyard wall was rebuilt.

Additions were, and continue to be, made to the interior of the church. Many of the double windows now depict the Apostles in stained glass, many as memorials to departed parishioners and stained glass windows in the south and north sides of the west wall depict St George & the Dragon and St Martin respectively. A set of framed 'Stations of the Cross' were added in early 1921 and a War Memorial was later placed in the porch. A large wooden cross also stands in the porch since the days when there was a mission run in the parish. A new pulpit was erected to mark the 40th anniversary of worship at St. Barnabas in 1924, it was later moved to its current position as the original position obscured the view of the chancel for some. The Golden Jubilee of the church was celebrated in 1936 and this was marked by the replacement of the chairs in the nave with pews. A hanging rood was placed in the church as a War Memorial following the end of the Second World War. The most striking feature of St. Barnabas Church are the murals which are on the north, south and east walls of the chancel. These were completed in 1948 and are the work of the late Revd. John Perret. The full story of the murals can be found here. During major renovation in the 1950s the organ received a complete overhaul and the statue of Our Blessed Lady was placed in the church. The iron gates at the north and south porches were fitted in 1984.

Church life

Whilst St. Barnabas has stood on its present site, it has not only been a place of worship for the people of Gorse Hill, it has also been something of a community centre. At the heart of this is the Church Hall which has undergone much development and renovation since it was built in 1889. The small hall and other facilities were added in 1933. In the past there have been various groups attached to the church including Guilds, mother and child groups, the St. Barnabas players as well as the ever present Scouts and Guides, there was even a band of bell-ringers at one point, despite the church only having one bell. The Church Hall was taken over for a British Restaurant during the war and a kitchen was constructed. Following the end of the war the hall was returned to its primary use. Despite the opening of a community centre the hall was still greatly used. The hall was most recently renovated a couple of years ago and is still vital to the community of Gorse Hill.

The 17th Swindon (St. Barnabas) Scouts have been in existence since 1932. The sale of the land around the old vicarage created a problem for the Scout Troop. They had always had use of a hut on this land. Luckily an agreement was reached and a new hut was built. The Scouts vacated this hut when they moved to their present quarters but the hut is still in use.

St Barnabas is now part of the United Benefice of All Saints, Saint Barnabas and the Parish of Saint Augustine and as such shares a special relationship with these other churches.

In his book, “The Parish of Saint Barnabas Gorse Hill, Swindon” (Red Brick Publishing, 1986), written to celebrate the Centenary year of St Barnabas Church, Frederick Fuller, closes with the following, which is still true to this day:

“St. Barnabas Church stands by the busy corner, on the site Philip Maddocks decided upon some 103 [122 in 2008] years ago. Today, when church and society are both threatening to fall apart, when zeal for individual freedom is pitted against the demands of law and order, then St. Barnabas Church can bring courage and hope to the district and parish of Gorse Hill. The task of proclaiming Christ’s salvation is still the same message, as St. Barnabas looks steadfastly to the future.”