THEY’RE DOING IT BY THE BOOK

As local councils race to close down community buildings across the nation, one church has spotted an opportunity.

Southampton City Council is one of many that has been forced to make major cuts in response to shrinking levels of central government funding. But when it announced the closure of the Burgess Road Library – immediately opposite Southampton University and 500 yards from the Sunday morning venue of Christ Church Southampton – the members of the church got praying, and wondering…

Safe community place

With barely any community facilities in the area, local residents were appalled at the prospect of losing their library. It was the one safe place they had. And the estate in which the library sits is in the top 4% of deprived communities in the country with regards to education, skills and training. But the council felt there was no alternative: cuts had to be made. Meanwhile, though, finding places to house its meetings and activities has long been a struggle for Christ Church. Over the past five years, the church has used ten different venues – with differing levels of ‘security of tenure’ – and unsuccessfully explored around 15 more.

The question had to be asked: could a solution be found which was a win for all three groups? In particular, as far as Christ Church was concerned, could the building serve as a new base for church life?

Despite support from the local MP and various other local dignitaries, the path seemed fraught with difficulties.

To start with, there was the question of whether the council would in practice consider working with the church. Although they promised to consider a bid from any community group offering to keep the library doors open to the community, it is no secret that some councils seem to take exception to churches. Happily, though, there seemed to be little negativity. Once assured that it would be run as a genuine public library (not censored, loaded up with Christian books or decorated with crucifixes), they were happy. They agreed to provide the building rent-free, maintain an up-to-date book stock and IT servicing, and grant a long lease, as long as the church guaranteed staffing and building maintenance.

That led to the second issue: the state of the building. It had seen better days. The council’s survey highlighted an immediate spending need of £170,000 just for basic maintenance and repairs after years of neglect. This was well beyond the means of such a young church. But with generous support from supporters and ‘community-minded’ general charitable trusts, a large grant from the council itself and the projected rent savings from the church’s other venues and office facilities, the project has been paid for.

Fitting in

But there was a third concern: could the space really work? The 18-strong church staff team all needed office space. And then there was the challenge of providing auditorium space for church gatherings of 150-200 at a time in a functioning library building. Happily, a suite of defunct offices was found upstairs which, once refurbished and supplemented by three further offices created by partitioning an old book storage area, meant the team could just about squeeze in. Then it was simply a matter of replacing all the floor-standing library shelving with mobile units. With this, folding seats procured and a storage area constructed, a 220-seater auditorium was ready to go.

Running a library?

What about running the library, though? This fourth issue was a big one. The church couldn’t afford to be distracted from gospel work by the daily challenges of operating a library. Nor did it want to be responsible for checking out Fifty Shades of Grey or A Beginner’s Guide to Astrology. Nor indeed did it want to be ‘unequally yoked’ in a cozy partnership with the Council. A way through was found in the formation of the Burgess Road Library Action Group, a community group responsible for delivering library services and made up of volunteers from the community (including some church members). The building is thus effectively a dual-use facility and the relationship of all parties is governed by detailed, arms-length contractual agreements.

Ready to go

One by one, the lights have turned green and prayers have been answered. By the time the newsprint on this page is dry, the final major piece of the refurbishment – the kitchen – will, Lord willing, be complete and the building will be fully ready to serve the needs of both the church and the community. The library is already open, the staff are in situ and most church activities have moved to the library. Sunday morning gatherings are expected to remain at Cantell School, which has space to accommodate the children’s ministry, along with the two morning congregations. But almost everything else is now in the new premises.

Serving the local community

So the church has a base for its growing ministry. But it also has an extraordinary opportunity to connect with and serve the local community. ‘Seek the welfare of the city’, the Lord instructed those exiled in Babylon (Jeremiah 29.7). As modern-day exiles, the church recognises the stewardship of the library building as an opportunity to work for the prospering of local residents in Southampton, at the same time as – indeed benefitting – the Word ministry of the church. There are few types of venue more neutral and inoffensive than a local library and already there have been instances of connections made between walk-in library-users and the church’s ministry.