Phase Three: Securing Our Future
As the congregation grows, the church needs to grow with it.
Phases 1 & 2: Completed
- Rebuilt vestry
- New rear extension for sanitary block
- Structural roof repairs
- New interior floor slab
- New ceiling and mezzanine floor
- Modern windows and doors
- Restored electricity supply
Where the Project Stands
Phase 3 · In preparation
Finishing the site
The third phase covers the outside of the building and the last of the essential services. It is being planned now.
- Still to come: Resurfacing the external footpaths
- Still to come: Connecting the remaining essential utilities
- Still to come: Completing the rear extension
An empty circle marks work still to come.
The extension is moving forward, though more slowly than we hoped. The quotations from building firms were well above what the parish can responsibly spend, so we have decided, as with the earlier phases, to manage the project ourselves. That is a significant undertaking, but one the parish has completed twice before.
Phase 3: Proposed Building Works
Resurfacing the external footpaths and connecting the remaining essential utilities at Providence Row - proposed elevations and floor plan for the rear extension below.
Draft plans - subject to change as the project progresses.
A Growing Parish
The extension is needed because of how much the parish has grown in the past year.
- 40+
- Baptisms
- 5
- Chrismations
- 6
- Crownings
- 3×
- Psalter evenings each week
In the last year alone, alongside many house blessings and pastoral visits, a new Sunday School was established, the parish held a three-day Summer Day-Camp, and two new workshops - iconography and embroidery - began. Prison and hospital chaplaincy, youth ministry, and catechesis continued throughout the year.
None of this would have been possible without the generous support of our congregation. The parish receives no external funding; everything here has been paid for by the people who worship here.
How to help
Three Ways to Help
Give - and Gift Aid It
Regular and one-off gifts support the whole of parish life. If you are a UK taxpayer, Gift Aid adds 25% to every donation at no cost to you. Regular giving also strengthens the parish's position with the bank if a loan is needed to complete the works.
Ways to give, below ↓Volunteer Your Time
The church and the Youth Centre are cleaned and looked after entirely by volunteers. An hour now and then makes a real difference.
Get in touch →Visit the Church Stall
The Church Stall in St Nics Youth Centre has Orthodox books in English, Romanian and Greek, as well as icons, candles and incense. Everything is offered for a suggested donation, and all donations go to the parish.
More about the Church Stall →Giving
Giving to the Parish
Give Monthly by Standing Order
The parish is funded entirely by the people who give to it. Everything it does, from the services and the Youth Centre’s rent and utilities to the care of its buildings, is paid for from those gifts. A standing order, or a one-off transfer to the parish bank account alongside, is the best way to give: the parish can claim Gift Aid on it.
Gift Aid adds 25% to a gift from a UK taxpayer, at no cost to you. If you pay UK tax, please complete the Gift Aid declaration here. May the Lord bless those who love the beauty of His house.
Give by Bank Transfer
- Account Name
- Orthodox Community of St Cuthbert and St Bede
- Bank
- Barclays Bank, Durham branch
- Sort Code
- 20-27-41
- Account Number
- 03013774
- IBAN
- GB47 BUKB 2027 4103 0137 74
- SWIFT/BIC
- BUKB GB22
These are our only official bank details. If you receive different account details by email or phone claiming to be from the parish, please call the church office to confirm before sending anything.