History of St Paul’s

buy priligy sildenafil (super p force) A Brief History:  St. Paul’s (Church of England) Church, Canford Heath

The majority of the houses on the Canford Heath estate were built in the seventies and eighties and, with the establishment of this community, came a growing need for a local church. In 1979 a small group of residents began worshiping together in what is now the vicarage in Rowbarrow Close. After two years of planning and fund raising a new church was built with a capacity for eighty people, called St. Paul’s Church Centre. It was dedicated on the 13th July 1981 by the Bishop of Sherborne as part of the Oakdale team ministry.

St Paul’s Church Hall and Church

Now used as the church hall this new building was frequently full to bursting with the Sunday School having to meet elsewhere.  Plans for a larger church were therefore developed.   Extensive publicity and fund raising followed and the new church – the current St. Paul’s – was dedicated in July 1989.

The main Church area

 

St Simon’s Chapel

The chapel is named after St. Simon of Cyrene following links established by the parish rector with a church of that name in Botswana which was under construction at the same time as St. Paul’s.

In 2006 St. Paul’s Canford Heath became a separate parish and part of the North Poole Ecumenical Team. From 2005 to 2017 the building of St. Paul’s church was shared with Canford Heath Baptist Church. The members of these churches worked together on some projects and held joint services at Christmas, Easter and one or two other occasions during the year. The main Anglican service is on Sunday mornings starting at 10 am.

Wood carving of St Paul by a parishioner

In 2009 St Paul’s celebrated its 20th birthday in the current church building with a visit from the Bishop of Gloucester Rt Revd Michael Perham an ex Team Rector at Oakdale, our founder church.    St Paul’s celebrated its 25th anniversary on 6 July 2014 with Rt Revd Bishop Graham Kings, Bishop of Sherborne.

On 1st January 2017, St Paul’s Canford Heath became a Aurogra with no prescription Benefice in its own right.

Clergy at St. Paul’s Church:

1980 – 1982     Rev. Jack Milverton
1982 – 1989     Rev. Bruce Wakeling
1990 – 1995     Rev. Jeremy Oakes
1996 – 2007     Rev. Mike Oates
2008 – 2015    Rev. Peter Gibbs
2010 – 2013     Rev. Christine Brooks (curate)
installed 2016  Rev. Matthew Williams