Stratford sub Castle village website
Salisbury, Wiltshire UK
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The Friends of St Lawrence Church, is a Charitable Trust (Reg. 1063271) set up to help provide funds for the upkeep of the Grade 1 Listed church and its grounds, situated in Stratford sub Castle, Salisbury, Wiltshire.
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Examples of funding by The Friends, including floodlighting to improve security.
Previous generations have done a pretty good job in maintaining the Church of St Lawrence and it behoves us to do a similarly good job so that the generations yet to come can share in its beauty. Our church has witnessed the naming, marriage and departure from this world of local residents for at least 8 centuries…. more than 800 Christmas Days and Easters!
The burden of the upkeep of the Church is now too large just to be funded by those attending services and yet there are many who attend the services irregularly or not at all, who would be saddened if the Church and its surrounds were not looked after and kept up as a quintessential English Country Church should be. So the Trust was set up to involve the wider community in the task of maintenance. A message of appreciation from the Churchwardens in February 2024 appears at the bottom of this page.
The Chairman of the Trustees is Ian McGill 01722 338210
Please consider supporting The Friends by taking out Membership from £10 pa - details below.
EVENTS The Trust regularly organises events within the village which are designed not only to raise money but to help engender a good community spirit. Members and non-members are all welcome.
Stratford sub Castle Primary School - Annual Christmas Art Competition
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The Friends provide book tokens as prizes for the Stratford sub Castle Primary School's Annual Christmas Art Competition.
The children's paintings, displayed on the back of the church door and at the ends of the pews, provide a bright and cheerful display.
This sponsorship fulfils part of The Friends' aim of promoting a good community spirit.
MEMBERSHIP
Many residents of Stratford sub Castle, former residents and other interested people, kindly support the Friends' aims by taking out membership. The Annual subscription is £10 single, £15 couple, renewals running from the date of joining.
Life-Time Membership is also available, with a one-off payment of £100 single, £150 couple.
As a Registered Charity (no. 1063271), The Friends are able to benefit from Gift-Aided subscriptions, enhancing the donation by 25% at no extra cost to the individual tax-payer. Members qualify for member-rate tickets for our events, and their accompanied children under 16 are admitted free.
If you are interested in joining The Friends, please contact Rosemary Winson, Publicity & Membership, Tel: 01722 325183 or email rosemary.winson@gmail.com
The Friends Newsletter is published twice a year and distributed with the Parish Magazine or directly to those FoSL members who live outside the area.
It is also available on this webpage: View the latest Newsletter.
In February 2024, The Friends received the following message from the Churchwardens:
CHURCH CHANCEL ROOF PROJECT. - Final Chapter.
I am sure many of you will have noted the reports in the Parish Magazine about the need to do urgent work on the church roof. The work was finished in November to a high standard, and it should mean that no further work will be needed in the foreseeable future. The work cost £30,000 which in many parishes the church community would have had to find. We are however blessed in Stratford with a supportive community which values its 12th Century church with its surrounding churchyard. Incidentally, the snowdrops look fantastic at the moment. That support is shown by residents giving talks about various topics which are extremely well attended and by visiting choirs.
The upshot is that the Friends of St Lawrence have been able to support this crucial work with a grant of over £11,300. This has meant the church finances have just balanced!
Your churchwardens would like to thank the Friends Committee and everyone who has supported them, for your amazing support.
Sue Thomson and John Walsh
Churchwardens
* The Friends of St Lawrence Church - Registered Charity No. 1063271
To comply with the General Data Protection Regulation, 'The Friends of St Lawrence Church' has prepared a Data Privacy Notice. You can view it by clicking here.