St Mary's Church, Welling facts for kids

St Mary the Virgin Church is a special church located in Welling, a part of London. It is named after the Virgin Mary. This church is well-known for its amazing collection of 20th-century art. It belongs to the Diocese of Southwark, which is a big church area.

History of the Church

In 1934, more people moved to the area, so a small hall was built for church services. This was part of the St Michael's church area in East Wickham. Plans for a bigger, permanent church had to wait because of World War II. Finally, in 1954, a new church was designed by an architect named Thomas Ford. It opened its doors in 1955, and that's when it became its own official church area.

Cool Art and Design Features

Thomas Ford, the church's architect, was inspired by an older architect named John Soane. Many of Ford's churches show a style called Soanian Classicism. St Mary's in Welling is a great example of his unique designs.

From the outside, the church looks like it's built in an Italian Romanesque style using bricks. It has a tall bell tower, called a campanile, on one side. But when you go inside, it looks very different! The inside has a Greek revival style.

The church is home to many artworks by famous artists from the 1900s.

• Outside Art: Above the main entrance door, there's a special decorated space called a tympanum. It's decorated with a rare art style called sgraffito. This is a type of wall painting where layers of plaster are scratched away to show different colors underneath. The artist was Augustus Lunn. His artwork shows scenes from the life of the Virgin Mary.
• Inside Paintings: On the wall behind the main altar, there's a large painted mural called a reredos. It shows the Ascension, which is when Jesus went up to heaven. This painting was created by a German artist named Hans Feibusch.
• Stained Glass: On either side of Feibusch's mural, you'll see beautiful stained glass windows made by Claire Dawson. They show two archangels, St Michael and Uriel.
• More Murals: Claire Dawson also painted murals under the arches inside the church. These paintings tell stories from the Old Testament that connect to events in the New Testament.
• Sculpture: There's a statue of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus carved from limewood. This was made by a sculptor named Philip Bentham.
• Stations of the Cross: Later, in 1992, ceramic Stations of the Cross were added. These were put in by John Dawson.

There is also a smaller side chapel dedicated to St Thomas of Canterbury. This chapel holds the blessed sacrament in a special cupboard called an aumbry.

The church's organ was built in 1955 by Mander Organs. It's a large instrument with four keyboards and 23 different sounds. The bell tower has one single bell.

Even though the church isn't officially listed as a historic building, it was added to the local list for the London Borough of Bexley in 2011.

Church Groups

St Mary the Virgin Church is a meeting place for local groups. It hosts the 2nd East Wickham Scout Group and the 3rd East Wickham Guide Company.