All Saints Church

A church has stood in Southbrook Street since 1908. The expansion of Swindon at that time meant that the Southbrook Farm area was included in the Borough resulting in the need for a church and a school.

The dedication of the temporary church was on 11th April 1908 and was preformed by the Bishop of Bristol, Dr George Forrest Browne.

All Saints Church was originally built in the parish of Rodbourne Cheney. However in 1929 it was decided, following further development of the area, that All Saints should be a separate parish with its own incumbent and in August 1929 the Revd B M Kelcey was appointed as priest-in-charge.

In March 1930 an Order in Council constituted the Parish of All Saints. This was formed primarily from the Parish of Rodbourne Cheney but also included some streets from St Marks. Revd BM Kelcey was the first Vicar.

The congregation grew and it soon became clear that a new church was needed to replace the wooden and concrete block church. The foundation stone for the new permanent church was laid on 27 November 1937 and building work was completed on 17 September 1938. The church was consecrated by the Bishop of Bristol, Dr Clifford Salisbury Woodward.

Throughout the war years regular services continued despite some damage being caused to the parish by enemy bombs. Several funerals were held at the church for those killed in the bombings.

Life returned to normal after the war and services and worship continued at All Saints without disruption. The appearance of the church was improved in the early 1980s, including the redecoration of the church, the parish rooms and the vestries.

In 1994, following the retirement of Canon Harris from the neighbouring Parish of Saint Barnabas, the Diocese decided to unite the benefice with that of All Saints. The Revd Paul Bennett became the first joint incumbent.

A substantial legacy was received by the church in 1996, which meant that substantial improvements could be made. These included the redecoration of the church, the installation of a loop hearing system and the resurfacing of the car park. A new digital organ was also purchased, financed by the congregation.

The United Benefice of All Saints and Saint Barnabas was joined by the Parish of Saint Augustine in 2004 when the current Vicar, Revd Alastair Stevenson was appointed as priest-in-charge at Saint Augustine’s.

All Saints is still at the centre of the community and is well placed to face its second century.