Re-opening hopes for mid-Norfolk church

There are hopes that Wendling Church, near Dereham, may be able to open its doors again at some point, having been closed for over three years.

There has not been a service at St Peter and St Paul’s Church in the village of Wendling since a Christmas carol service was attended by only a handful of people. After dwindling congregations and a lack of parish funding, the gates the 14th century church have been shut for more than three years.
 
Reverend Miriam Fife, who oversees 17 churches, said that the parish-funded place of worship was now no longer safe to enter because it had deteriorated since closing its doors. She explained that parish churches are solely funded by the people in the parish, and that there is no pot of money or funding.
 
However, earlier this month, the parish council agreed to take on the responsibility of maintaining the grounds of the church and Revd Fife has hopes of people in the village establishing a ‘friends of St Peter and St Paul’s Church’ group to hold fundraising events in the community so that the church could open its doors once more. Such a group could also set up a rota for the maintenance of the church.
 
This story is based on an article in the Eastern Daily Press.
 
The photo of Wendling Church is courtesy of norfolkchurches.co.uk.

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