Friends of St Michael's
Society for the Protection of St Michael's Rendham
known as:
The Friends of St Michael's
A successful village with a Christian church has existed in Rendham since at least the 11th century: in paragraph 6, 43 of the Domesday Book, "a church with 24 acres" is listed. It was subject to the laws of the land and was already operating within the prevailling bureaucracy. This church was built of wood and is thought to have stood roughly where the nave of St Michael's is now. The church has evolved over the last thousand years but it has always stood at the centre of Rendham life. The present church is now Grade 11* listed, and parts of it date from the 1200's. It now needs to be repaired in order to remain an historic monument and focus for the village activities in the future.
Who We Are: the Friends of St Michael's is a secular charity, established in 2009 in order to raise funds to help preserve the fabric of the church. We only provide funding to ensure the church remains at the centre of the village as its most important historic monument. Since our establishment, we have organised a number of events to provide entertainment for the village and to spread the word about our work.
So far, funds raised have allowed us to contribute towards the first phase of the work, which began in summer 2010, when we helped fund the repair of the Chancel gable, copings and stone kneelers which hold up the east end of the church. Next we need to treat roof timbers and redecorate the interior. This phase will cost an estimated £50,000 and will deal with the most urgent repairs and put the building on a sound footing.
So far we have raised almost £20,000
FRIENDS OF ST MICHAEL’S FUND-RAISING FOR CHURCH RESTORATION
Next phase of work to start after Easter 2013
We are delighted to be able to tell you that the next major works to preserve the fabric of the church are about to begin! We have been fantastically successful in raising the £26,000 necessary for the next phase. The Wolfson Foundation (www.wolfson.org.uk) has committed £5,000, the Suffolk Historic Churches Trust has contributed directly to the PCC, and we have secured funding from the Garfield Weston Foundation, the Norman Scarfe Trust, and the Alfred William Charitable Trust. Most impressively of all, most of the funding will come from the Friends of St Michael’s. This is all thanks to you Rendhamites who have supported us in all sorts of ways: making donations directly and through LocalGiving, and by attending all sorts of events over the last many months, from fabulous concerts and delicious suppers to the varied programme of the winter talks (how many people in the world have even seen the Suffolk Punch stud book?).
Our particular thanks to Anji Hart for getting the grant-application ball rolling, and then to trustee, Caroline Stanley who has spent hours completing, submitting and then following up applications, with gratifying results! Our work is not over by any means as there will be more essential restoration work to undertake, but we can be proud of our achievements to date.
The work starts on April 8. The timbers will be treated for woodworm, there will be a lot of plaster repairs and repointing, the walls will be redecorated with specialist microporous paint, and ventilation will be improved so that the building can breathe. During the work the church will be unfortunately have to be closed. We expect this phase of works to be done in 2 sections: the church will therefore close from just before 8 April until approximately 17 May, and will reopen for roughly 4 weeks until 17 June, when it will close again for the decorating works to be done. As with all building work, these dates may change – please check the village website and the church noticeboards for any updates. If you have any questions, please contact the churchwardens.
What we need from you - anything you can give to help preserve this historic building: cash, cheque, or a longer-term commitment via a standing order. Any financial help will be gratefully received and most welcome.
Please make cheques payable to The Friends of St Michael's Church Rendham, and send them to the Treasurer, Dorothea Farquhar, at the address below.
Standing Order and Gift Aid forms follow on from the page. If you wish to give they can be printed, as appropriate, and forwarded to the Treasurer, or in the case of the Standing Order form, to your bank with a copy to the Treasurer.
Treasurer Dorothea Farquhar at:
Middlemarch, Bruisyard Road rendham Saxmundham IP17 2AG
Click here for Gift Aid Form/Standing Order form
View of the St Michael's Chancel after renovation
We regularly hold fundraising events all of which have been highly successful. For futher events please go the the Happenings page at the side of this page.
You can read reports of the events on the Happenings report page also at the side of this page and see the latest pictures in the photo gallery.
Postcard available for sale - depicting St Michael's Rendham
From waterclour by Tory Lawrence April 2012
In aid of the Friends of St Michael's
To purchase priced 50p please ring Wendy Wray 01728 663295
PLEASE SUPPORT THE FRIENDS OF ST MICHAEL’S!
Regular readers of the village website and The Street, and those who come to the Friends of St Michael’s events, such as the fabulous Song Supper and our Winter Talks, will know that we’re always trying to think of new ways to raise funds. For this reason, we are part of Localgiving.com, which is managed by the Suffolk Foundation.
So many thanks to those of you who supported us during the Grow Your Tenner matched funding campaign with Local Giving, we are hugely grateful! We raised nearly £200 as a result, which is really fantastic! There is still always an opportunity to donate to us via www.localgiving.com
Please help us!
or you can access localgiving.com direct on the localgiving.com website at http://localgiving.com/charity/charity-rendhamchurch
FAQs
Q: How do I sign up to give monthly?
A:When you go to the Friends of St Michael’s webpage on Localgiving.com and click to Donate, there will be two options; you can make a one-time donation or a monthly donation.
When you choose to give monthly, you will agree to a secure Direct Debit mandate administered by NatWest which will send the donation amount of your choice from your bank account to the Friends of St Michael’s each month on the day of the month you choose. In order to give monthly you will need to enter your name, bank account number, bank sort code, amount you’d like to give and date you’d like to give each month. You will not need to enter your credit or debit card details.
Q: Can I give anonymously?
A: You can give anonymously to any charity you donate to on Localgiving.com. When you give anonymously, the Friends of St Michael’s will not have access to your information.
Q: Can I claim Gift Aid?
A: Yes, please do claim Gift Aid if you are eligible to do so; it makes a big difference by adding an extra 25% to your donation, at no extra cost to you. You can claim Gift Aid on monthly donations and/or when giving a one-time donation.
Q: Can I cancel my monthly donation?
A: Yes, you can cancel your monthly donation at any time.
