St John's Chatham

08/09/2026

We are absolutely honoured to welcome you to our Heritage Open Days here at St John's Chatham!⛪
If you are planning your visit this September, here are our official opening times:

📅 Opening Times:
• Friday 11th Sept: 2pm – 5pm
• Saturday 12th Sept: 10am – 5pm
• Thursday 17th Sept: 7pm – 9pm
• Saturday 19th Sept: 10am – 5pm

✨ Special Highlights During the Open Days:
• Sat 12th Sept: Welcoming all Ride & Stride participants!🚴‍♂️
• Thu 17th Sept: An evening featuring Oral History Medway, with a talk on the Chatham Intra by Rob Flood.🎙️
• Sat 19th Sept: Our Community Fun Day celebrating our 205th Birthday!🎂🎈

(Keep an eye out during your visit for local history displays from the Chatham Historical Society, too!)

Admission is completely free and everyone is welcome. We can't wait to see you there!👋
📍 St John’s Chatham

07/09/2026

At our Sunday Morning Celebration yesterday we said a huge THANK YOU and goodbye to Rev Ruth Teruel-Pyrke as her time as curate here at St John’s Chatham came to an end. Ruth joined the St John’s Chatham team over a year ago to conclude her curacy, but Ruth and Adam’s journey with us goes back way further than that.

We are so grateful for Ruth’s faithful ministry amongst us!

Ruth and Adam now begin a new chapter of life and ministry as the move to Germany to lead a church plant in the city of Paderborn.

If you’d like to find out more about what Ruth and Adam are going to be up to and how you can support visit: www.stewardship.org.uk/partners/adam_ruth_pyrke

We look forward to sharing updates from Ruth and Adam in the near future and to discovering what it looks like to partner with our sisters and brothers in Germany.

We pray blessing on Ruth and Adam and on all that God is calling them to.

We look forward to seeing all that God has in store for them in this new season and how we can continue to partner with them and with our sisters and brothers

04/09/2026

Welcome to not just a new term but a brand new academic year!

After taking a break for the summer lots of regular activities and events are starting back…

This Sunday we are back to our regular pattern with our 8am Holy Communion on the first and third Sunday of each month and with DWELL on the second and fourth Sunday. Our Sunday Morning Celebration at 10:30am and Medway Oaks from 2 to 4pm are on every week.

Morning Prayer is also back up and running with the opportunity to start each week day with a short prayer time either in the building or online. Do note that Thursday mornings have moved 30 minutes later to 8am. Monday Night Prayer is also starting back this week.

Our Tuesday evening and Thursday morning football are also now back up and running for the new term. Tuesday evenings are at the Garrison Grounds on Sally Port Gardens (Great Lines) and Thursday mornings are at Watling Park Football Centre at the Anchorians Sports Ground on Darland Avenue, Gillingham.

LITTLE LAMBS is starting back this coming week. Please note that the first 3 weeks of the term are happening at Emmaus Christian Centre on Clover Street.

Our midweek youth group, Youth CONNECT, is also starting back this week on Wednesday evening. All secondary school aged young people welcome!

We have one OPEN Church session coming up this Monday but then we will be taking a couple of week’s break at the building is being used for an external activity.

As you can see we’ve got lots going on. The best place to check out everything that is going on is the calendar page of the St John’s Chatham website: stjohnschatham.co.uk/calendar

If you need any more information please let us know and please do feel free to pass on to others who you think may be interested in and benefit from what is going on here at St John’s Chatham.

We are praying for all who are starting new schools, academic years, job roles or just generally new seasons in life!

24/08/2026

🌿 Love nature but lacking the space to garden at home? Looking for a meaningful way to connect with your local community?

Come along to Gardening Club at St John’s Chatham, every Tuesday at 2:00pm! It’s a wonderful opportunity to make new friends while sharing in the joy of stewarding and caring for our planet's green spaces.

Absolutely everyone is welcome and encouraged to join us… whether you are an experienced gardener, a complete beginner, or just want to enjoy some fresh air and good company.

🪏 🧤 Tools and gloves are all provided, so just bring yourself! We’d love to see you there! 🌍🤝

19/08/2026

We love the Growing The Kingdom series of good news stories from across CofE Diocese of Rochester and this time it is a real privilege to be able to share about Medway Oaks, part of the amazing work of Medway Centre of Mission!

Please get in touch with Helen if you're interested in getting involved or if you'd like to explore how Medway Centre of Mission could support you in setting up something similar for your community.

A church session offering simple hospitality and acceptance is buil...

12/08/2026

Yesterday afternoon was our second week of Gardening Club. Once again, a huge thanks to those who were involved. It is fantastic to see the team growing already, and doing such a wonderful job at maintaining our outdoor space.

Please do join us on Tuesdays at 2pm if you’re up for helping out (tools provided).

We look forward to seeing this group continue to grow, and seeing our outside spaces transformed over the coming weeks and months.

10/08/2026

You are invited to our COMMUNITY FUN DAY on Saturday 19th September. There will be lots of fun activities, live music, plenty of sweet treats and much more…

…over the coming weeks we’ll be sharing lots of exciting information about the afternoon (including how to enter our Teddybear Parachute Contest) but for now please save the date, spread the word and get ready for lots of fun!

The third weekend in September marks the Anniversary of St John’s Chatham so please do come along to celebrate with us. All welcome!

09/08/2026

What a WONDERFUL morning!

Thanks to all who joined us for our Outdoor Morning Celebration on Victoria Gardens. It was such a joy to worship together surrounded by the wonder of God’s creation and to be reminded of the beauty that exists all around us. We are also really grateful for the small group who met back down at the St John’s Chatham building.

After two weeks ‘on tour’ next Sunday morning we will be back to meeting for our Sunday Morning Celebration at 10:30am at St John’s Chatham (our 8am Holy Communion and DWELL start back in September).

07/08/2026

Don’t forget that this Sunday (9th August) we have our Outdoor Morning Celebration at 10:30am on Victoria Gardens. We will meet beyond the bandstand up towards the trees along the top section of Fort Pitt Hill. If you are able to please bring along a camping chair or picnic blanket to sit on. We look forward to worshipping together in this beautiful setting with such great views across Medway.

For those who may be concerned about accessibility or extreme weather conditions there will be a small gathering taking place at the St John’s Chatham building alongside our outdoor celebration.

Medway Oaks will be taking place as usual from 2 to 4pm.

We look forward to seeing you this weekend.

04/08/2026

Today was our first Gardening Club. Huge thanks to the small group who turned up and made a fantastic start on clearing some of the area outside the building.

Please do join us on Tuesdays at 2pm if you’re up for helping out (tools provided).

We look forward to seeing this group grow and seeing our outside spaces transformed over the coming weeks and months.