The new 'Centre On Gracious Street' (off Fisher Street car park) is now fully open and in daily use by the Noah's Ark Pre-school and a variety of other groups. Members of the local community and visitors to the town are invited to come to The Bridge coffee bar which is open Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings every week from 10.00am - on Fridays students from Harrogate College serve homemade light lunches. Fundraising still continues for Phase Two, however, which will complete the redevelopment of our older buildings to provide improved facilities for both church activities and community use.
COGS REDEVELOPMENT SCHEME FUNDRAISING EVENTS
The Bridge Coffee bar
THE MAYOR OF KNARESBOROUGH’S EVENT
FOR
 Saturday 6 March 7.30pm
Knaresborough House
American Line Dancing
Bar and Raffle
Tickets £6 including refreshments from Joyce Hoare
01423 860750 or on the door
Qualified instructor – Cathy Hodgson
Dances for everyone even absolute beginners
Come and join in the fun – dance, watch or socialise
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HARROGATE MALE VOICE CHOIR
 Music for all tastes
Saturday 27 March 7.30pm
Gracious Street Methodist Church Knaresborough
TICKETS: £6 ADULT £4 CHILD
from Pauline Murray
01423 863188
or on the door
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SOUP & SWEET
LUNCHES
1st & 3rd Wednesdays each
month 12.00-1.00pm
Gracious Street Methodist
Church Hall
Soup & Sweet with tea
or coffee £3
(Homemade food always needed)
Contact: Eleanor Borkett 862345
SEWING & ALTERATIONS
Any sewing jobs small or large
Contact: Pauline Murray 863188
TOTALLY UNIQUE
Handcrafted cards – made with love by Rachel
Cards for special occasions
can be ordered
Contact: Rachel Watson 866323
HAND KNITTING
Hand knitted baby jackets,
cardigans & jumpers for
children & adults,
hats, scarves, ponchos, toys,
etc.
Contact: Hazel Sorton 866101
'TAKE-A-TUBE FOR COGS'
Please ‘Take-a-Tube’
from the Church foyer or the
Church Hall
Tubes hold £14 in 20ps
- £18 if Gift Aided
Contact: Joyce Hoare 860750
A Place for the Community
Gracious Street is a 'seven days a week' venue, with activities
happening throughout the week, as well as two services every Sunday.
During the morning service there is a thriving Sunday Club, together
with a crèche
for babies and toddlers. Youth Fellowship meets on Sunday evenings
to provide activities for 11-18 year olds. During the week, various
bible and fellowship groups meet. Lunch Link provides meals for elderly
members of the local community on Tuesday lunchtimes. On Wednesday,
Market day in Knaresborough, there is morning coffee, followed by on
the first and third Wednesday a soup and sweet lunch. This is specifically
organised to serve both the community and visitors to the town. On
Friday mornings, Playbox Parent and Toddler Group, Noah's Ark Pre-school
meet everyday during term time. The premises are used by the
whole community. The official opening took place on Saturday 21 November 200.'
List of Organisations using the Church Hall on a regular basis: |
Noah's Ark Pre-school
Mon – Fri am,Tues & Thurs pm
Social Services.
5 days per week all day
Cameo (Come and Meet Each Other)
Every other Monday evening
Men's Forum Committee.
Monthly Monday morning.
Yorkshire Countrywomen's Association.
Monthly Monday afternoon
Lunch Link
Tuesday a.m.
Knaresborough Methodist Church Fellowship
Tuesday afternoon
Coffee Stop.
Wednesday a.m.
Soup and Sweet Lunch
Every other Wednesday lunch time.
Art Class.
Thursday morning
Table Tops (Table Tennis)
Thursday morning |
Probus Club.
Every other Thursday afternoon
Playbox (Parent and Toddler Group)
Friday am
Youth Drop In (Run by Council)
Friday Evenings
Mens' Breakfast
First Saturday mornings in month
Sunday Club (3–11s)
Every Sunday morning
Youth Fellowship (11-18s)
Every week
Alpha Course (a twelve week course once or twice a year.)
Weekly sessions
Music Group
Hall & Church for rehearsals weekly.
Church Council Meetings
As arranged
Circuit Meeting
As arranged |
Regular Occasional Bookings
Birthday Parties, Tewitt Band,
Horticultural Society, FEVA (Knaresborough's annual Festival of Arts),
Knaresborough Players, Inner Wheel. There are other
bookings on an ad hoc basis should there be spaces.
Possible future
groups
Parenting Courses, Bereavement Counselling, Town Youth Venue, Marriage
Enrichment
Group.
Reason for change
The existing hall was built in 1815 as a galleried non-conformist 'preaching
box'. Later the interior and exterior of the old building were extensively
altered to provide a Sabbath and Day School for about 200 children. The school
was on two levels, with access to the upper level provided by means of two
external stone staircases. This building is not structurally unsound, although
it does require extensive repair, with cracks and fractures to most sills and
above a number of windows. A survey for the project has revealed woodworm in
the roof timbers thus necessitating a new roof. The general condition of the
exterior walls requires renovation, with damp patches in some areas. This has
led to the use of internal panelling on many walls to hide the effects of damp.
The external walls have been altered in a number of places to accommodate the
changes in use. On the 'car park' elevation can be seen a number of bricked
up doorways. The present Church building was built in 1975 and has proved to
be adaptable and flexible over the last thirty years. The ancillary premises
attached to the church all have flat roofs which bring their own problems.
At present the members of Gracious Street tolerate inadequate ancillary
premises making do with buildings that are far from satisfactory for
our present usage.
They are also starting to limit our potential to serve the future needs
of our members and the wider community. The shortcomings of the hall can be summarised as follows. It has:-
- High maintenance and repair costs.
- Expensive heating
costs due to large single glazed windows, high ceilings and poor
insulation.
- Lack of storage space.
- Poor accessibility from and no physical
link between the church and hall.
- Lack of a 'homely' atmosphere
which is not conducive to the work of many groups.
- Structural
pillars severely restricting the uses to which the hall can be
put.
- Inadequate facilities for the disabled
- A shortage of rooms
for use by member groups and other organisations.
- Lack of facilities
for young people.
Adaptation of the hall and ancillary premises to our needs
If the hall is not renovated it will inevitably deteriorate. The site is in
a conservation area. As a historic market town, Knaresborough is made up
of buildings from many periods and styles of architecture. The schoolroom
is almost two hundred years old and there is no reason why, with sensitive
restoration and up keep, we should not be proud of it for another two hundred
years!
Newly renovated premises will provide significant benefits:-
- Much better access for the elderly and disabled.
- Flexible, updated
and purpose built multi-functional premises with modern and comfortable
facilities which meet the anticipated needs
of ALL user groups.
- Modern internally, yet sympathetic to
the surrounding area.
- A facility for the whole town, but privately
funded.
- An important building retained for the future.
- Reduced heating
costs achieved through high levels of insulation and a new heating
system.
- Potential for much increased use by the community
as well as the church.
Key Points of Proposed Scheme
- The existing nineteenth century church hall will be refurbished,
providing accommodation which will be suitable for games, drama, singing
and social
events.
- A new modern hygienic kitchen will be able to cater
for large numbers of people.
- New toilet facilities will be provided
for people of all abilities.
- There will be a lift to the first and
second floors which will give additional meeting rooms together with
toilets and storage space.
- The scheme will include a link building
connecting the nineteenth century schoolroom with the present church.
Within this link
building will be a large
open plan foyer with informal seating; an area designed specifically
for our daily Pre-School children's activities; a library/bookstall
and display
area;
a meeting room, a Vestry and an office.
- In addition an
enclosed paved courtyard will be created.
Finance
The expected cost of the scheme is at least £1 million. This
scheme will be financed through fundraising, gifts from church members
and grants
from charitable bodies. The Mayor of Knaresborough, Councillor Mavis Clemmitt, has chosen COGS as her Charity for the year.
Summary
- Gracious Street Methodist Church is a thriving organisation
within the town of Knaresborough.
- The present buildings can no longer
meet the needs of either the Church or the Community.
- Demolition of the church hall is out of the question and it is therefore
sensible to refurbish creating an inetgral suite of premises.
The membership of the Church support a refurbishment scheme.
- The proposed scheme will be carried out to a high standard and will enhance
this part of Knaresborough.
Contact Information
The Architects
The Church Council have selected Chartered Architects Richard Eves, Alexandra
Villa, 3 Victoria Avenue, Harrogate HG1 1EQ Telephone 01423 504488,
to be the architects for the proposed scheme. For further Information please contact one of the following:-
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