A Day of Celebration for St Paul's Church and Primary School, Mill Hill

The Bishop of London, The Rt Revd and Rt Hon Dr Richard Chartres unveils the plaque to open the new Wilberforce Centre in the crypt of St Paul's, Mill Hill

12/06/08

A service to mark the end of two projects was held at St Paul’s Church, Mill Hill, on Sunday 8 June. The church was celebrating the end of a three year project to restore and reorder the church and to build new community facilities in the crypt, whilst St Paul's School officially opened two new classrooms and a suite for year six.

Both church and school communities joined together for a service of celebration and thanksgiving, which was presided over by the Bishop of London, the Rt Revd and Rt Hon Dr Richard Chartres.

The service was attended by the Mayor of Barnet, Councillor John Marshall, Andrew Dismore, MP for Hendon and some 350 supporters of the project and members of the congregation.

The service included readings about William Wilberforce, who built the church, and his association with the campaign to end the transatlantic slave trade. Amazing Grace, the well known hymn written by fellow campaigner John Newton, featured in the service.

The church also welcomed Samuel Wilberforce, and his wife Sarah to the service. Samuel is one of 250 living descendants of William Wilberforce. Samuel and his father have tried to continue the family tradition by campaigning against modern forms of slavery.

For St Paul's Church, the celebration was the realisation of a vision that was born some 8 years ago to restore the past, build for the future and serve the community. The vision has involved securing the long term future of the grade II listed building, increasing capacity for the growing congregation, creating a more flexible church interior to meet the need of today's worship, creating additional church and community facilities in the crypt, building a new entrance area on the north side of the church and very importantly ensuring the building was fully accessible for disabled visitors.

Collectively, these physical developments will enable St Paul's to enhance its spiritual mission and community outreach and to develop its heritage and educational programmes. The service at St Paul's was a very special day for both church and school.

The Vicar, the Revd Jonathan Shaw, and Headteacher Miss Jane Shelbourn, felt the day symbolised the close working relationship between school and church throughout the year. It gave time to reflect on the achievement of the past 3 years and to give thanks for the opportunities they will present in the future.