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new 'propeller church' in roundshaw

Thursday 23 January 2003

A completely new St Paul’s Church now stands proudly on the Roundshaw estate, on the edge of Wallington, Surrey. The old church, built in 1980/81 on the site of the former Croydon aerodrome, was always known as ‘The Propeller Church’ because its cross was made from an aircraft propeller. The cross has been re-erected on the new church, which is to be formally opened on Saturday 25 January by the Bishop of Southwark, the Rt Rev Tom Butler.

Roundshaw is an area of deprivation surrounded by apparent prosperity. But Roundshaw estate is being regenerated. With the help of government money, the tall blocks are being demolished, other flats and houses are being refurbished and the first-floor walkway decks removed. New houses are under construction and some of the property is to be managed by a housing association.

The opportunity was taken to work together with the local authority’s ‘Heart of the Estate’ project. The old St Paul's was knocked down and rebuilt nearby, to make way for a new shopping parade. The advantage was that this provided money for a new church to be built. The Rev John Gould, Minister-in-Charge says, "It was an opportunity to build a more presentable church. But it also enables us to provide a new church hall with better community facilities."

Architects KC White of Chelmsford say: “The distinctive characteristic of the building is the broad sweep of the roof from the main entrance up to the projected apex that oversails the east end of the sanctuary.” Glazed doors lead from the foyer to all the main areas, and the worship space and the hall are interconnected with an acoustic folding partition. The new church includes facilities for disabled people and a pre-school play group.

Ends.

Contact for further information: Rev John Gould, 020 8773 2842.