It is a well-known church in the heart of Oxford but changes are afoot at the Wesley Memorial Church. Reporter Georgina Campbell looks at the progress being made to revamp the church and improve the work it does helping others

A church at the heart of the city centre is on track to have its £1.5m revamp completed by May.

More than 45 charities and organisations will benefit from the Wesley Memorial Church’s ‘Open Doors’ redevelopment project.

With £850,000 of the £1.5m budget raised, work began in November to transform the church in New Inn Hall Street.

Derek Rawson, Cumnor resident and chairman of the project steering group, said it was fantastic to see it all coming together.

He said: “This project has been in the making for seven years and I’m so excited that we can start knocking walls down and open up the space.

“It all started from needing to raise funds for a new floor in the John Wesley Memorial Hall, but we couldn’t just ask people for something like that, so it just spiralled from there.

“The whole point of this project is to open up the church even more to the community.

“We have more than 54,000 people come through our doors every year and we want people to come here and use our facilities.”

A spokesman from Rainbow House, the family drop-in centre that has operated from the church for 30 years, said the space was “invaluable.”

He added: “We would be lost without this place.

“It’s a great way to meet other mums, and it is the only drop-in available in town. It provides invaluable play and rest space when out with the children.”

Phase one of the project, to install a stair lift, was completed in February last year.

Phase two is now under way as the extension begins on the main hall, and the building of a new kitchen and upstairs meeting room.

But the project still needs money to refurbish the John Wesley Memorial Hall, the blue kitchen and the atrium, which will connect the redevelopment to the church’s front door.

As part of the redevelopment, the church will give five per cent of all donations to Christian Aid for its work in Burkina Faso, West Africa.

In addition to the money raised so far for the redevelopment, the church has given £13,572 to the charity.

Sarah Clay, regional business manager for Christian Aid, said the church was a fantastic central space for the charity to operate from.

“I’ve been here for 12 years and it really is a great space because we are in the heart of the city centre.

“We get people pop in and pick up things and it really helps us to reach out to the community, so we’re so excited that the redevelopment is under way, which means more people can enjoy the space.”

The redevelopment is scheduled to be completed by May this year.

For more information visit wesleymem.org.uk/welcome.htm.