Building Project

St Peters South Tamworth is a church family that is on about knowing, serving and proclaiming Christ, in the power of the Spirit to the glory of God. In His strength, we seek to be a loving, prayerful disciple-making community that has Jesus’ heart for all who are lost.

We now have four congregations meeting each Sunday at St Peter’s as well as congregations at Coledale and Duri. As Tamworth is growing, so we are growing, and our building needs to grow too. Over the last couple of years, the Parish Council has been thinking hard about what building features do we need to support gospel growth over the next 50 years.

Plans have been developed to increase the chapel capacity and add a generous foyer area to accommodate growth and facilitate the kind of warm fellowship and interaction that we believe will support further growth.

I’m excited by all of this because the more I look at these plans, the more they make sense and they will support our church as we seek to reach people for Jesus.

The 2020 St Peter’s building vision is a large one, but I believe also a necessary one if we are to take the next step to facilitate the growth of gospel ministry at St Peter’s South Tamworth.

In Christ,
Rod Chiswell

History

St Peter’s has enjoyed over 70 years of ministry with steady growth requiring periodic expansion of facilities.

We now have the opportunity to build upon the foundation, vision and commitment of those who came before us, for the generations to come.

Plans

The proposed building design has so many advantages for our Church life.

This design sees our chapel space grow, the addition of a generous foyer, and relocation of the kitchen and toilets. As we look to the future, this design seeks to improve how we move, interact and use our space.

In developing this design, we have sought to create a welcoming, versatile and modern space that will support us into the future as we seek to honour our Lord and serve his people.

A few Highlights

Entry: The new building has a clear and inviting entry into the spacious foyer. It is easily accessible from the carpark and, bound by glass walls, the foyer will enjoy generous natural light.

Foyer: The foyer is a wonderful addition to our church life. This space allows for comfortable cafe-style seating, with a clear view and access to the outdoor spaces. The foyer could also be used as a meeting space for groups of 30-100

Chapel: The chapel will seat 300 people and can overflow to 500. This gives us the capacity to hold larger gatherings, which is already needed, but even more vital for future growth.

Stage: The wide stage allows for more creative freedom, with better sound, improved lighting, and clearer lines of sight to what is happening up the front and larger screens.

Kitchen: The new kitchen is in the very hub of our informal gatherings. It allows easy access to the playground, foyer and the main chapel. It will enable us, combined with the new foyer, to envisage new and different types of ministries where food and drink are part of the relational mix.

Access to the playground: The glazed foyer allows people to move easily between the indoor and outdoor spaces, helps newcomers to see where to move after the formal part of the service, and the verandah offers increased shade in the outdoor areas.

What does this new building offer to ministry at St Peter’s?

It provides us with a very welcoming entry and foyer space which is great for everyone who walks through our doors – newcomers and regulars.
It allows people to enjoy each other’s company with a comfortable indoor space – grab a coffee and sit and chat on a lounge in a cafe-like atmosphere.
It assists families to be able to keep an eye on their children in the playground while continuing conversations in the foyer.
It helps parents with toddlers young children as they will be able to let them crawl and move around on the floor in the foyer space.
It adds much-needed space for seating up to 300 people with an overflow to 500.
It gives us a great intermediate-sized space separate to the main meeting area that can be used for various gatherings ranging from 30-100 people.
It facilitates the enjoyment of food and drink as a natural part of our informal and formal gatherings with a better located and equipped kitchen.
It provides shade and protection from the rain under the verandah for outside activities, including fellowship after church, children’s activities and any other usage we can dream up.
It creates new opportunities for toddler group and the possibility of having an indoor/ outdoor space for activities like this.
It allows us to develop the site to the north should we need additional meeting spaces for kids’ church, growth groups and training as we grow.

Getting on board

How can I get involved?

Pray for our church and our ministries

That we will know God better
That, by serving God and serving one another, we will proclaim Christ in Tamworth
That we will continue to be a loving and prayerful community

Give us feedback

You can give us feedback or ask any questions about the design by:

Placing a note in the feedback box at the back of the church building
Writing on the feedback slip and putting it in the collection bag –
Writing to admin@stpeterstamworth.org.au
You can also collect a copy of a ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ document from the back of the church building

Come to a Building for Our Future launch event

Our launch events for the project are your opportunity to see and hear how this project will ensure that we will continue to grow and serve in the power of the Spirit to the glory of God.

How will we decide when to start?

Following the launch event, we will ask for people to commit to this project in prayer and financially, as we seek to move towards our target budget of $2.5 million.

These pledges will help us make wise financial decisions about this building upgrade. Once we have enough pledges to meet our first financial target, a Special General Meeting will be called to vote on the commencement of the building works.