Church Pew Sales Page - Okeford Fitzpaine Dorset

11/06/2023

20/11/2020

phase2 - south aisle repairs this week reveal extensive wet rot to floor and wall. WE NEED help NOW from the community to restore the Jacobean pews ready to be moved across to form a beautiful new chapel on the south aisle. These pews need deep and frequent waxing to get them into a stable condition. Please help the small band of people who are working hard to ensure we have a church building in the village for future generations to use and cherish. Perhaps you could form a family bubble and commit to an hour a week by adopting a pew?

11/11/2020

To update readers, the rotted floor of the south aisle is soon to be restored in readiness for receiving the Jacobean pews (currently sited on the north wall) to create a beautiful new chapel on that side of the building. Before these old pews can be moved, however, much love and 'elbow grease' will be needed as they must be deeply waxed over a period of time to restore the wood's stability and flexibility. Would your family or neighbours group be able to take on the task of tending one pew? The correct wax and demonstration training will be provided. Perhaps when Covid rules permit, we could arrange a 'coffee and waxing' morning - now there's a novel idea!

17/09/2020

Not only was Sat12 Sept Dorset Historic Churches Trust's annual fundraising day but this year it coincided with the World's Biggest Bike Ride.
WOW - what a day we had!.. perfect cycling weather, wonderful views of the Stour Valley, interesting company causing stragglers to miss NCN sign! (just as well Marnhull does mobile), Hinton St Mary's fountained fishpond with lemon trees, a variety of old churches in need of repair and one that had beautifully improved its facilities (called 're-ordering'), blackberrying and a picnic lunch sat up high, even a diary farm visit for milk and then, when you thought it couldnt get better, an al fresco supper courtesy of St Andrew's members magically appearing to revive body and soul.
We cycled 56k/ 35miles over 4hours, climbed >2,000', used 1,000 calories (though I did 38miles retrieving and rescuing) and they were often Dorset hilly!
Our 10 riders' average age of 68 supports 'use it or lose it' theory, showing that energy comes from being energetic.
PHOTO at Kington Magna though some needed their lunch more than photoshoot !
THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROSITY
Half of the money given will be returned directly by DHCT to St Andrew's and on their behalf I thank you for helping us with our own Re-ordering project.
.. AND IT IS NOT TOO LATE TO MAKE A DONATION if you are receiving this and impressed with our achievement. Please do so either personally or via my JustGiving page https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/okefordfitzpainestandrewsdmg

17/09/2020

The fold down pew found its new home nearby in the village last weekend.
If anyone local is still hoping to buy a pew, there may be an opportunity for one after the baptistery area is finished and the retained pews sited around the font so please do register your interest.

Want to love cycling? Learn the road skills you need to get about by bike confidently, reliably, q

01/09/2020

RIDE + STRIDE takes place each year and is going ahead on Sat12 Sept. It is the annual fundraising event for DORSET HISTORIC CHURCHES TRUST. In previous years the day has raised £80k+ to support maintenance and improvements to the county's old church buildings. The congregation at St Andrew's OF supports Ride+Stride and this year will do so again with individuals walking, cycling, perhaps even horse-riding to visit other church buildings either with sponsorship encouragement or by making a donation themselves. OF PCC will be applying for a £££grant from DHCT towards the cost of replacing the rotted wooden floor (discovered when the pews were removed from the rear/west end) with Purbeck stone before re-siting the font between the rear windows to create the new baptistery area.
HOW CAN YOU HELP support DHCT and this essential repair work?
1. Pick up your sponsorship form from inside the Church porch and then ask your friends and family to financially support your efforts in walking or riding even just a few nearby churches
2. JOIN an all day long bike ride (with loads of stops visiting lovely gems of buildings) organised by your R+S Parish Organiser (me again) and make a donation for a great day out with all the planning taken care of, an early eveng barbecue supper and live 60s music outside to help you recover. Numbers are limited to 15 cyclists and evening places to 20.
Email by asap if you would like to join the ride and/or the supper and I will send you details.

27/08/2020

Over 80% of the 26 pews removed from St Andrew's church nave have found new homes within the village community, including two at The Royal Oak which join a third thought to have been removed some years ago from the front of the south aisle (correctly spelt this time!).
Nearly half of these pews were found to have suffered wet rot damage to the oak runner supporting them where they were in contact with the walls of the building caused by the floor boards and joists having rotted beneath them.
Work to repair and replace the floor boards and joists is already underway.

09/08/2020

Much of the media attention given to this village church in North Dorset is misinformed. I thought it may help those who genuinely want to understand and have not followed the Project over its four year course in order to reach the stage of being granted permission to do the work (known as a Faculty from the Chancellor of Salisbury Diocese) to have the following information. The Project is not about creating a wider isle for weddings - that is tabloid story making. Removing pews from the nave is part of the larger interior re-ordering process which this church last went through in 1865 when the Victorians altered it to suit the needs of those times, including removing the baptism font from its prominent site to the far back of the church; it will now be restored to its original position with some of the pews sited around it to enable new members of the church to be baptised. The building must also meet the needs of people with disabilities, of children and higher safety standards if it is to attract the wider community. The re-ordering includes a toilet and a servery, efficient and effective lighting and heating and re-siting the much older 17thC pews to form a new and traditional chapel in the south aisle where sun and light flow in and illuminate the beautiful window there. The project will enable acts of worship and bible study and children's teaching that are more than simply passive acts as in past centuries. Without moving forward, the church community risks dying with the current generation and the building which has been a focal point, unfinanced by them, will become a financial burden on the parish. Dilys Gartside

03/08/2020

This is the official sales page for the Victorian Pews of St Andrews Church, Okeford Fitzpaine.

BUY A PEW TODAY:
Secure now for £200 (250cm or 320cm pews) by emailing or make an offer. Offers are being considered until the 7th Aug for a variety of pews. See other post for full details of the variety of pews and radiators for sale.
Collection only on a set date in mid August 2020 tbd.

Background Information:

The majority of the Victorian pews (installed approx 1870) are for sale and will be replaced with flexible seating. The older 17thC Jacobean pews are not for sale nor 5 of the Victorian pews which will be retained to create the seating in the new baptistery area.

This decision has been reached by the Parochial Church Council of Okeford Fitzpaine with the approval of the Diocese of Salisbury after consultation and the consensus of the congregation.

The Church Council wish to create flexible seating options with free standing chairs, replacing the majority of the Victorian fixed pews.
The new seating options will make the space inclusive, welcoming, flexible and usable for as many people as possible.

For further information see the church's official website:

After the granting of the faculty for the re-ordering of St Andrew's Church, the PCC has decided to go ahead with the first stage which is to remove the pine Victorian pews and replace them with chairs. By introducing flexible seating we make the church more inclusive. Wheelchair and pushchair users...