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Friends of St George and St Mary’s Parish Church

Unearthing our past; inspiring our future

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The Friends of St George and St Mary’s

Over the past seven years, there have been a few different groups of people, who have put forward expressions of interest to the National Lottery Heritage Fund, to repair and re-open the church building. These bids were not successful.

In June 2023, a new team, the ‘Friends of St George and St Mary’s’ formed; it is a sub-committee of Gresley PCC. Its aim: to work to repair and reopen Gresley church as a multifunctional community building and to build new links with the community. The initial membership, three PCC members, other church members, a retired vicar, a funeral director, has now grown with the addition of Allan Randall, (of Focused Learning and Interpretations), County Councillor Alan Haynes, District Councillor Ben Stuart, Mark Duggins (who also works voluntarily at Sharpe’s Pottery), Jon Whiten (a local businessman, church treasurer, Deanery and Diocesan Synod member). The Magic Attic, in Swadlincote, has offered to help the group all they can. Links have been made with South Derbyshire Mining Preservation Society, who joined with the Friends, in putting on the Memories Day event in October 2023. This was well attended by local people and we were able to record memories of working in the local coal mines from a retired miner.

We launched the Friends group publicly at the annual ‘Festival of Leisure’ run by South Derbyshire District Council, in June 2023. Our ‘meet and greet’ stall was very well received by the people of Church Gresley. We had a great response. We launched our questionnaire and 379 people have responded.

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Background and the story so far

St George and St Mary’s is a grade II* listed building, and it is on the heritage at risk register. There has been a religious building on the site since 1135 C.E. when Gresley Priory was established by the Gresley Family. At the Reformation, much of the Priory buildings were dismantled for the stone. The nave remained for use as a church for locals to worship in. The chancel was added in the 1872, the architect was Sir Arthur W. Bloomfield.

The Gresley Family

There have been long links with the Gresley family throughout its history, and also with Gresley Colliery, which became established adjacent to the church. The church is much loved by the community of Church Gresley and many local families have connections to it.

Closure

At the end of 2017, St George and St Mary’s church building was declared unsafe for use due to falling stonework and so it was closed to the public. An in-depth survey of the stonework and roof revealed the extent of the work needed. These costs have escalated due to inflation.  The church congregation has continued to worship in different places.

A Community minded church

Gresley church family are very community minded. Volunteers are already running a number of community groups: Babies and their carers’, an elderly befriending group, craft and sewing group as well as being involved in a school assembly team and a once-a-month Messy Church. The church has in the recent past, supported the local women’s refuge and the breakfast club at a nearby school.

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Heritage research

As well as the event at the Festival of Leisure, we’ve had: a Memories Day for people to come and view old photographs and to tell us their own memories of Church Gresley, a social media presence via Facebook, a community questionnaire, a Youth Forum, a churchyard survey. We’ve also looked at the memorials in the church to the Gresley family and others, and to those who have fallen in both world wars. We’ve discovered more about the Gresley family and the Alleyne family, as well as other local characters.

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Heritage Highlights

We’d like to run heritage activities using these as a focus:

  • St George’s and the Gresley Family and their links to the different periods of history, the industrialisation of the area e.g. civil war, canals, coal, potteries.
  • Churchyard stories: linked to Gresley Colliery mine disasters, child employment in the mines, Colliery manager and the local pit lockouts of 1867-1868 linked to the early attempts at Unionisation. Victorian children/illness/medicines.
  • Gresley Priory, the Black Canons and include community archaeology work with the Mercian Archaeology Society.
  • The famous Gresley Dance book and possibly have a dance artist in residence. Links already made with Elizabeth Lawson
  • Sir Nigel Gresley, railway engineer.
  • 51 Chimneys Coal and Clay – share different aspects of our industrial past. Including working with the members of in The South Derbyshire Mining Preservation Society.
  • Safe Haven Café (supporting lonely/isolated people, those in need/on low incomes.)

We’ve also made links with St George’s Primary School and identified areas of their curriculum where the church or Church Gresley’s history can be integrated into their studies.

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Vision Statement

To Preserve Heritage, Connect Community and Enrich Lives.

Our vision recognises the deep, rich history, faith, and culture that our building has been a part of since 1135 C.E. The vision aims to serve the needs of both our current local and broader communities and ensures the continued life and relevance of this historical landmark, to this generation and to future ones. It celebrates the heritage of the building and the historic characters and communities that have shaped and developed Church Gresley itself, through its ‘pits, pots, and pulpits’.

The three parts of our vision statement are explained:

  1. Preserve Heritage: The architectural, historical, and cultural significance of St George and St Mary’s Church will be repaired and protected. Through skilled restoration and maintenance, the site will be safeguarded for future generations. Important stories of local, historical characters, people and events connected to the church and to the local area of Church Gresley will have been researched, recorded, displayed, and presented to the public.
  2. Connect Community: The building’s restored and repaired environment will be an adaptable, multi-functional, vibrant, inclusive space that links our past with our future. Local community groups will be able to use the building for celebrations, meetings and for learning. A variety of cultural and educational events will provide opportunities for community members to connect with one another and to connect with their local heritage. Local residents, school classes, local groups and other interested organisations will learn about the church’s history, as well as our local history, in all its diversity, from coal mining and potteries and the lives of some of the families these industries supported, to significant landowners and dignitaries such as the Gresley and Alleyne families. These educational heritage events and activities will foster a sense of belonging and pride in our shared roots.
  3. Enrich Lives: The building will become a hub for spiritual, cultural, and educational enrichment. We will offer a diverse range of heritage learning workshops and events these will promote learning, creativity, personal development, and the teaching of new skills. These opportunities will enrich people’s lives and give inspiration and a deeper appreciation and understanding of their local heritage and will encourage individuals to explore their own connections to history, faith, and their community’s heritage.

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