St Mary’s in Eversholt Street is covered in scaffolding

SHOCKED parishioners have been told their church could be demolished because of its crumbling disrepair. St Mary’s in Eversholt Street, Somers Town, stands wrapped in scaffolding and corrugated fences amid concerns around falling masonry.

The Church of England is footing a £100,000-a-year bill for this alone, but an even bigger one – £1.7million – to repair the building in full. Even so, many of the congregation were left stunned when the nuclear option of bulldozing the Grade II-listed church completely was shared at a recent service.

A bid to the National Lottery for funds was unsuccessful.

The drastic step would mean the end for a church that has served generations of families since it was consecrated in 1826.

Designed by father and son team William and Henry Inwood, St Mary’s was home to Father Basil Jellicoe in the 1930s, whose groundbreaking work to establish the St Pancras Housing Association cleared the area’s slums and tackled the causes of poverty.

The work Father Basil began continues to the present day, with St Mary’s playing a crucial role in the social fabric of Somers Town and King’s Cross. In the 1970s and 1980s, the church provided a safe haven for women who worked in the area when it was known as a red light district.

Author AN Wilson detailed how the plans were unveiled in an article for The Oldie magazine and said he was shocked by the behaviour of “ecclesiastical bureaucrats” who had failed to give the vicar, Fr Paschal Worton, or churchwardens any warning.

They are highly intelligent and motivated and are going to fight this every inch of the way,” he added. “The church bureaucrats want to demolish a place that has been sacred to this community for 200 years and put up a block of flats.

“Any humane person would see a place where generations of human lives have experienced grief, loss, poverty, joy; a place where the poor have been treated with dignity and respect. The church – ye gods, the church! – sees the chance to rid itself of a problem and to make a nice little earner.”

Fr Paschal Worton said he did not wish to comment until he had received further information. The Archdeacon of Hampstead, the Ven John Hawkins, told the New Journal: “Last summer, while works were being carried out on the vicarage, we became aware of serious structural faults with the Grade-II listed St Mary’s, which were confirmed following detailed studies by stonemasons, architects and structural engineers.

“In June, St Mary’s was temporarily closed while scaffolding was erected to protect public passing and worshippers entering the church. The church was reopened in September 2022. I spoke to the community and congregation to explain the situation. The scaffolding comes at an annual cost of £100,000, and now that St Mary’s PCC have exhausted their funds, the diocese has agreed to bear this cost. This is not an indefinite solution, given the diocese’s responsibility to support the hundreds of other churches within its boundaries.”

He added: “For the scaffolding to be removed, immediate repairs to the stone work and cement at a cost of £1.2m – in addition to £500,000 for urgent repairs to the roof, electrics and heating – are necessary.

“A consultation begins in January to inform the future use of St Mary’s, including closing it for public worship. This will take at least 12 months, while St Mary’s PCC and the diocese explore potential funding. St Mary’s has for 200 years ministered to the Somers Town community and been at its heart. It is our sincere hope that a solution is found to safeguard its future.”