Our story so far

St Barnabas’ Church has, as its base in Dalston, two remarkable, early 20th century buildings. Our large, Grade II* listed church building looks backwards to Byzantine church architecture and forward to Modernist structures. A two-storey Mission Hall stands next to it. Their origins lie in the work of major public school Merchant Taylors’, which aimed to do good works, both spiritually and socially, in an area of great poverty. (Click here for more information on the church’s history.)

We are a Church of England congregation that formed in 2010. We operate under a Bishop’s Mission Order, tasked with a particular ministry to creative professionals in the area. Our buildings had once been used by the local parish church, but had stood empty for around three decades when we moved in. The hall was squatted for stretches of time, but when we arrived, the only occupants were pigeons, who had made their home there. 

The Diocese of London generously granted us 99-year leases for both buildings, the church rent-free and the hall at a modest rent, in return for maintaining them. In our early days, we focussed our energy on the hall, raising over £150,000 from church members, supporters and grant-making bodies, to comprehensively renovate the hall. The hall is now a huge asset. It is well-used by a range of local arts and community groups. It also hosts a range of church activities, including Sunday children’s activities, our mid-week youth group, a monthly art club for pre-school children and their parents or carers, and until recently hosting the Hackney Winter Night Shelter.

Now, we’re turning our attention to our church building.

Our vision

As anyone who has visited our church building knows, it is damp, low on light and uncomfortably cold – other than on the hottest of summer days. (The ancient heating system stopped working soon after we began using the building.) In fact, we retreat to the hall for almost all of our services for around half of the year. We want to make this space much more useable and welcoming.

A recent architectural inspection highlighted the most pressing priorities: we need to replace the window frames, carry out repairs to the (leaking) roof, repoint the brickwork, replace crumbling lino with safe flooring, fit new wiring and fuseboards, install heating, improve the lighting and build toilets.

This is a huge task. It’s also an expensive one: we estimate it will cost in the region of £350,000. Although this is a daunting sum, we are convinced there are a host of good reasons for improving our church building:

• As its stewards, we’d like to preserve and restore this building for its original purpose, and maintain the heritage it represents in Dalston. That means making the building’s basic structure sound and ensuring that it is safe and comfortable for people with different needs. While we want it to be warm and well lit, we are committed to minimising its environmental impact. We consider this project a valuable opportunity to do that.

• As the worshipping community based here, we’re keen to be able to use this awe-inspiring space for services throughout the year, at the same time as ensuring that they are physically comfortable and accessible. We also see opportunities to use the church in new and different ways, including for activities and events for the local community – to serve them and to point them to Jesus.

• As a positive presence in the area, we want the local community to be able to benefit from the church building. We know there is interest from actors, dancers and musicians who already use our hall and admire the acoustics and beauty of the church building. They already often use it in the summer months and we’d like to make it available to them and others throughout the year.

Can you help?

There are a range of grant-making trusts from which we can seek contributions, but they expect us to have a well-developed plan for improving the building before they will consider an application for funding. That is why we need to commission an architect to put together a project proposal. This involves developing a detailed plan for the work, including condition surveys and initial architects plans, and clarifying strategies for raising the necessary funds.

This initial work will cost £20,000, so that is our first fundraising milestone. We are aiming to cover most of this cost. We would massively appreciate whatever support you, our supporters, can give - with this critical, early stage of work to improve our building and as we pursue it over the coming months and years. Here are some ways in which you can be part of this work:

• Pray If you are a person who prays, please do that.

• Give If you are able to give money, we would be very grateful for any donations. You can give online here.

• Volunteer If you would like to organise a fundraising activity or event (Covid restrictions permitting), do get in touch with our vicar Nat.

• Share If you know anyone who might be interested in our project and could help please share this PDF.

More info

If you would like regular updates, please get in touch with our vicar Nat.