St Peter's and St Paul's
Our church serves the worshipping needs of a thriving and friendly community, drawn from Shiplake and the surrounding areas.
All newcomers and visitors are warmly welcome.
Services
- All-Age Family Service
- Sung Eucharist/Holy Communion
- BCP Holy Communion
- Lay-led Services
- Joint Benefice Services at Shiplake, Dunsden and Harpsden churches
Shiplake Sunday Club - for Children
House groups - for small groups of about 8-10 people
Warm Welcome Space – every Monday from 11am – 1.30pm
Hand chimes for children – every Friday at 4pm in The Ark
Bellringing – contact us to find out more
Weekly e-newsletter – to sign up, email Leigh
Contact:
Revd Robert Thewsey, Rector, Shiplake with Dunsden and Harpsden cum Bolney
The Rectory, Church Lane, Shiplake, Oxfordshire – 0118 940 3484
Revd Sarah Nesbitt, Assistant Rector, revsarahjoy@gmail.com – 07770 930756
Times of services and other information are on the Church website
Half Term Activities: 'Exploring Easter'
Shiplake Church are delighted to be offering activities for all ages again this half term. It will be a really fun week and we hope this helps with your half term plans! Please do share with your friends and family - spaces are limited so please book as soon as you are able.
You can book by emailing Leigh at benefice.sdh@gmail.com; we will need a contact telephone number and the names of all attendees. Children under 18 must be accompanied, but please feel free to bring friends too. We will ask their ages so our provisions meet their needs.
The sessions will run from Monday 13th - Thursday 16th February from 10.30am - 12.30pm but you may arrive and depart at any time. Please just sign in with Revd Sarah when you arrive so we have a record of attendance.
If you need any additional information please let us know.
Leigh & Sarah
Outline plan (subject to minor amendments). You may participate in as many as you wish.
- Every day: Easter Edibles
- Monday: hand chimes, chickens in baskets, Easter frieze (Palm Sunday)
- Tuesday: Easter hats, beaded nail crosses, Easter frieze (The Last Supper)
- Wednesday: Easter gardens, Easter cards and prayer door hangers, Easter frieze (Crucifixion)
- Thursday: Easter wreaths, silk painting, Easter frieze (Resurrection)
- and other bits and pieces each day such as egg decorating, Candlemas quiz, Easter emoji explorers, bellringing (Weds & Thurs) and palm frond/cross-making
Article created / last edited: 22 February 2023
THE SECRETS OF SHIPLAKE CHURCH
Do you know that we have a beautiful 11th Century Parish Church in Shiplake with a fascinating history? Its attributes include wonderful mediaeval stained glass windows purchased in 1828 from an Abbey in St Omer in France.
An illustrated brochure has been prepared describing its history, artefacts, monuments and its evolution from mediaeval times to the present day.
Copies, price £3, are available by the font at the south door of the church, or from Tim Woods Ballard 0118 940 1342, 29 Baskerville Lane, Lower Shiplake RG9 3JY.
Article created / last edited: 10 March 2019
An Appeal from the Rectory
Dear friends
Our church buildings here in this benefice are all beautiful, and are very loved by our local community. Shiplake and Harpsden Churches are both Grade II listed which shows their importance to the local history. I am not too sure why Dunsden is not listed as it is a magnificent example of a simple Victorian Church with lots of lovely details.
Both Shiplake and Harpsden churches are open as a village asset every day, with Dunsden being open at weekends during the Summer months, for anybody to come along and have a moment of quiet. However, at present it is only the regular congregation who bear the maintenance costs for these lovely sites. Contrary to popular belief, we, as a local church, receive no income from the government – the only help we can get is that we may reclaim the VAT on some repairs to the fabric of the building.
Each of our churches are inspected once every five years – this is called a Quinquennial Inspection, and is carried out by an architect. This report gives the Church a list of what maintenance tasks need to be undertaken, and then kindly prioritises them over a five-year period. This list can sometimes be very daunting for our congregations as upkeep on these lovely old buildings is something like the painting of the Forth Rail Bridge.
In line with many churches around the country our regular congregation give money to the church on a weekly, monthly, quarterly or annual basis, and we have just adopted the ‘Parish Giving Scheme’ across all three churches to help with this task, as the ‘Parish Giving Scheme’ claims back the Gift Aid on our behalf (currently 25p for every pound). This generosity pays for the ministry and mission of the church, but leaves very little to put towards the necessary buildings maintenance programme.
We are aware that many villagers support the churches, and that the buildings mean a tremendous amount to local people, and those who have moved away. Local people support the church and wish for it to be available for when they might need it. For example at a family wedding, funeral, baptism, School service, concert, Christmas and Easter. So on behalf of our congregation members I extend an invitation to all our local people to express their support for the church financially - even a very small amount is greatly appreciated. I would encourage you to give on a regular basis, and if you are a tax payer then to use the ‘Parish Giving Scheme’. Please do look at the following website which explains how the system works: www.parishgivingscheme.org.uk/for-donors/ and if you would like to sign up to this scheme then please contact either myself for Shiplake and Dunsden at robert.thewsey@btinternet.com or for Harpsden please contact paulandmarybarrett@tiscali.co.uk
From my own point of view I find it slightly and sadly ironic that we all now pay an insurance company to protect us from the historic ‘Chancel Tax’ when moving house, when a similar amount given regularly to the local church would contribute directly to the upkeep of what are certainly the oldest buildings in our local communities.
I hope, and pray, that you will feel able to support the church financially so that we can all ensure that these magnificent buildings are maintained in good order for future generations to enjoy and cherish.
With all Gods Blessings
Robert
Article created / last edited: 19 February 2019