St Laurence Church and The Ark, Alvechurch

31/03/2025

In need of some Half term fun

Look no further ....sign up to this years Easter Dance Camp with Amy Greaves School of Dance here at St Laurence Church and The Ark, Alvechurch

🐰🩰🤸‍♀️

The Easter holidays are just around the corner , Are you in need of ideas or childcare? If so have you seen how EGGcellent the Amy Greaves School of Dance is?

If you are in need of childcare then you and your child need the upcoming dance camp in the Easter half term!

📅 24th & 25th April (can book 1 or 2 days)
⏰ 9am -2pm
📍 The Ark Alvechurch

31/03/2025

Half Term will soon be here

We are holding a FREE Easter themed movie 🎬🐰 here at St Laurence Church on Monday the 14th Of April at 10am

Join us to watch Peter Rabbit

Grab yourself some movie snacks - Hot Dogs and Popcorn available to purchase on the day along with hot drinks, biscuits and squash
🍿🌭☕

29/03/2025

Posy's ready for tomorrow's Mothering Sunday Service at 10.30am. All are welcome to join us as Revd Gail leads our worship.

Mothering Sunday is a day of mixed emotions, come if you need to celebrate or weep. Come if you need to sit quietly or seek company. If you will find taking part in the service too much simply come and sit in our lady chapel. Come and be as you need to be.

29/03/2025

Here we have this weeks notices and worship times.

25/03/2025

Last week on another community page a question was posted asking about the name inscribed on the church tower. It had some wonderful responses, a particular favourite was saying maybe it was one of the disciples names. We didn't know the answer so asked Colin our Tower Captain who is a tower of knowledge (see what I did there) and we can now answer 33 years of wondering for our person asking the question - it is the stonemason mark. The tower is 15th century, so we thinking it is pretty amazing that it is still so clear and well preserved.

The Tower went on to have two further major works, it was remodelled with a new parapet in 1676 by Samuel and Thomas Richards and restored by Butterfield in 1890-91.

Do you have any questions about the church tower you would like answered? Could your question be answer on our next Tower Tuesday? Send your questions in the comments and we will do our best to answer them all.

Thanks to the National Lottery we are able to secure the heritage and future of St Laurence Church Tower.

25/03/2025

Come and join us tomorrow in The Ark for our Places of Welcome. Meet new people, have a chat, play a game or do a jigsaw, or just simply sit and enjoy the company of others while sipping on a nice cuppa and a biscuit, or even a slice or two of toast.

It would be lovely to see you!

24/03/2025

The Easter holidays are just around the corner , Are you in need of ideas or childcare? If so have you seen how EGGcellent the Amy Greaves School of Dance is?

If you are in need of childcare then you and your child need the upcoming dance camp in the Easter half term!

📅 24th & 25th April (can book 1 or 2 days)
⏰ 9am -2pm
📍 The Ark Alvechurch

22/03/2025

At St Laurence, Alvechurch, pray for our Growing Mission and Ministry group and Mission Accompanier. We pray that our focus on families and youth will see growth in numbers and leaders. Pray especially for our NWC’s, our monthly Cafe Breakfast Church and our Tots and Toddler Worship. For our ALMs. Clergy: Gail Rogers, Martin Allen, Readers: Sue Phillips-Wardle and Helen Ayling.

21/03/2025

We bring you this weeks notices and worship times.

There are lots of things coming up so make sure you have your diaries ready and mark the dates. There are so many to choose from, I think I will leave you all to take a look for yourself and decide which services you are going join us for, if not all!!

We look forward to welcoming you.

18/03/2025

Restoring the bells at St Laurence Church.
A survey in late 2005 declared that the church bells would soon be unringable. All the bells and fittings were badly worn, and the wooden frame was unstable on the supporting beam due to weakness through age and wood rot. An appeal was launched in 2006 to raise the funds with an aim to get them done for 2011 which would mark a milestone in the history of the five "Joseph Smiths" bells and the 300th anniversary of when they were originally cast in 1711.
Over 5 years we received funds from events, grants and the support of donations from many in the community. We raised £100,000 to cover the work.

On Christmas Day morning 2011 the bells were rung for the last time before the bells and frame were removed from the tower.

April 2012, the bells, new support grillage and cast iron frame were ready to be installed in the tower. Work was completed by May 21st 2012. The restored bells rang for the celebration of the Late Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee on June 3rd 2012.

Thanks to the National Lottery we are able to secure the heritage and future of St Laurence Church Tower.

14/03/2025

We bring you this weeks notices and worship times.

This week we have Holy Communion from the Book of Common Prayer upstairs in the Ark on Wednesday 19th at 10am but otherwise it's all a little quiet as we start to prepare for Holy Week.

If you would like to join us for the shared meal for Maundy Thursday, 17th April at 7pm, there is a sign up sheet in church or you can contact us at the office on 0121 447 7955.

11/03/2025

This week for Tower Tuesday we are focussing on the Tower Clock.
The church clock is visible from most parts of the village
and its chimes are audible everywhere.

The church clock is situated in the bell chamber of the
tower and has external faces on three sides of the tower.
It is a three train JB Joyce flatbed clock dated and installed
in 1914. It is only the second clock to have been mounted
in the tower in that building’s 350 year history.

Currently the clock is wound manually at least once a week every week of the year, summer and winter. This involves accessing and climbing the spiral staircase to the ringing chamber, and then physically turning three windlasses in turn to raise the weights from ground level up to the clock level. The windlasses are mounted on the side of the clock at a height which necessitates the operator standing on a box to reach them.

This is a heavy manual task instituted at a time before current Health and Safety regulations.

The installation of an electrically operated winding system will completely remove the need for these manual activities.

Thanks to the National Lottery we are able to secure the heritage and future of St Laurence Church Tower.

07/03/2025

We bring you this weeks notices and worship times.

This week we look forward to the Annual Spring Lunch being held in The Ark on Thursday 13th March. Arrive from 12.30pm with food served from 1pm.
There are a couple of tickets left if anyone would like to join us. Please contact Charlotte in the office on 0121 447 7955

May we also remind you that if you have not completed the forms for the church electoral roll then there is still time to do so. The forms can be obtained from the church or downloaded online via the linkhttps://www.parishresources.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Application-for-Enrolment-Electoral-Roll.pdf

06/03/2025

The Ark Tango Festival
8th and 9th March

for more information or to book please contact Andy - [email protected]

04/03/2025

Does anybody have a local contact for the service / repair of our Ark Industrial Glasswasher ? Many thanks

04/03/2025

For the first of our Tower Tuesdays, we introduce Belfry Bill.
Will Bourne, Workhouse Bill, Belfry Bill, Tiny - he was only 4ft 6in in height, he had several nick names. Bill was the gravedigger and responsible for ringing the morning bell at 5 a.m. and the evening bell at 8 p.m. until both were discontinued. The 1851 census has him living in Swan Street, but tradition has it that he lived in the church tower, and, armed with sword and pistol, he guarded the graveyard. He also had a wide reputation as a clock repairer. This portrait of Belfry Bill hangs in the choir robing room in the tower.

Thanks to the National Lottery we are able to secure the heritage and future of St Laurence Church Tower.

04/03/2025

Will you be joining us tomorrow at 7.30pm for Ash Wednesday Service of Ashes?

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a 40-day season of repentance, fasting, and reflection for Christians. Many Christians attend special Ash Wednesday church services at which churchgoers receive ash on their foreheads or the top of their heads, as the wearing of ashes was a sign of repentance in biblical times. Ash Wednesday derives its name from this practice, in which the placement of ashes is accompanied by the words, "Repent, and believe in the Gospel" or the dictum "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return". The ashes are prepared by burning palm leaves from the previous year's Palm Sunday celebrations.

27/02/2025

We bring you this weeks notices with all the latest news and worship times.

There is lots going on from this Sunday as we see the beginning of Lent, when we begin on Monday with the Lent Group, followed by Ash Wednesday.
Details of the Lent Group is available in the Grapevine and in church regarding the group meetings if you would like to join in.

We look forward to welcoming you!