Welcome
Welcome to the web site for St John the Baptist Somersham. This church is one of the four churches belonging to the Benefice of Somersham, Pidley, Woodhurst and Old Hurst. Click [here] for the main shared page of the benefice churches. This page has only specific information relating to St John’s’ Somersham.
Opening Times
St John’s Somersham is open daily from around 9 am to dusk. The church building is accessible to visitors except for the vestry and the bell tower which are locked. There is a toilet in the church vestry which is open when there is a service or public event in the church. There is on-street parking outside church and a small free public car park on the opposite side of the road to the church.
Top Ten Attractions in Somersham Church
- Medieval Roof Bosses
- Carved Corbels
- A surviving Memorial Brass in the Sanctuary
- Medieval Five Lock Chest made of a single piece of timber
- East Window – a memorial to Somersham soldiers who died in the First World War
- The remains of the doorway and stairway to the former Rood Loft
- Brass Candelabrum hanging in the Sanctuary
- Various stone plaques and memorials in the Chancel and Sanctuary
- Stone Font given by a former Rector
- Early 20th Century Pipe Organ
If you are new to, or visiting, one of the parishes in our benefice please get in touch with us. The Contacts page has details of how to do so.
Regular Services
- Sunday Morning at 10:30am regular sunday worship – see the weekly sheet for details
- Wednesday morning at 9;30 midweek commmunion followed by coffee.
Activites for Chidren
St John’s Somersham is the home of several regular activities for those with young famiies. More details are on the Children & Family Page. Among the current activities are:
- LITTLE ACORNS -This is a baby and toddler group held at St John’s Church, Somersham every Tuesday in term time from 9:30 – 11:00am. Children are invited to sing, play, listen to stories and do crafts together while beginning to learn about Jesus. Please come and join us to find out more
- MESSY CHURCH – This is very popular and is a way of attending church for families involving fun. It is not a craft club, but it helps people encounter Jesus. Its values are about being Christ-centred, for all ages, based on creativity, hospitality and celebration
- SUNDAY SCHOOL – This meets on the first and third Sundays of the month at 10.30 in Church, during the Sunday Service. On the second Sunday children’s crafts are available during the service.
Location Map
History & Architecture
The Parish Church of St. John the Baptist is the largest of the churches in the Benefice. Situated in Church Street, in the heart of the village of Somersham, the church stands on a site which in all probability has been consecrated for Christian worship since the second half of the seventh century. The current building though dates from the period between 1250 and 1300 and is likely to have been built and paid-for by one of the bishops living in the (now disappeared) Bishops Palace which was sited only a few hundred yards from where the church now stands.
Other Activities at St John’s
OPEN THE BOOK – Open the Book presents the Bible in primary schools in an accessible and enjoyable way in school assemblies. Members of our church and Somersham Baptist Church go into the primary and independent schools in the village and tell stories in a 10-15 minute presentation.
MOTHERS’ UNION
A well attended branch of the MU meets each month and supports the Church in many different ways. They support various local charities, meet with ladies from the other Churches and enjoy various outings. Open to men too!
ALPHA
The Alpha Course, now known simply as Alpha, seeks to introduce the basics of the Christian faith through a series of talks and discussions. It is described by its organisers as “an opportunity to explore the meaning of life”.
BIBLE STUDY GROUP
A group meets on Wednesday evenings to study different books of the Bible in a relaxed atmosphere. You don’t have to be an expert – no-one else is – just want to learn more.
FLOWERS
Our Church is usually beautifully decorated with flowers, either for Sundays or for weddings. This is all done voluntarily by our flower arrangers who put their time and talents to good use for the benefit of us all.
BELL RINGERS
We like to welcome people to worship with our Church bells. We need more ringers to join our bell ringing team, who also ring for weddings – and get paid for it!
CREATIVE MINDS
Is run once a month by a lady who is training to be an art therapist who comes to lead the activities which are quite simple. It is not an art group but an opportunity to do something creative/therapeutic and have a coffee.
CHURCH CLEANERS
A clean and tidy Church is part of our welcome to visitors, but we need new people to join in our team of volunteers. Are you good with a broom and a duster? If you would like to help just get in touch with the churchwardens whose details you can find on the contacts page.
News
South Porch Roof Repairs November 2020
The work to repair the roof which started in July is now complete. It has been fraught with various difficulties and a job which was originally going to cost about £8,000 escalated to over £20,000 because some of the roof timbers were in an extremely poor condition and had to be repaired and in some cases replaced completely.
We are most grateful to the following organisations who have provided grants to allow the necessary work to be carried out.
We have received a grant of £5,000 from the National Churches Trust which is the national, non-profit organisation dedicated to supporting and promoting churches of all Christian denominations in the UK. It provides grants for the repair, maintenance and modernisation of church buildings. It also acts as a catalyst to improve and bring resources to the management of church buildings and promotes the value of church buildings to the community at large. (For more information visit www.nationalchurchestrust.org).
We have also received a grant of £3,000 from the Cambridgeshire Historic Churches Trust, which provides grants for works of repair and improvements to places of worship across Cambridgeshire.
The Friends of Somersham Parish Church have also provided a grant of £5,000. The’Friends’ raise funds to maintain, repair, restore, preserve and improve Somersham Church.