IT’S been a dream for the past 14 years – soon it will become a reality.

The Rev Lorraine Snape, curate-in-charge, on the site of the new Whiteley Church

Plans for the long-awaited church building for the new town of Whiteley have now been revealed. And ex-international cricketer Henry Olonga will kick off a fund-raising drive later this month.

The ambitious £647,000 building will include a worship area for 200 people, a welcome area, fully-equipped kitchen and café area, and rehearsal rooms for musicians.

The centrepiece of the new church will be a striking pyramidal roof over the worship area. It will be built on a site close to the heart of the town, on higher ground next to Whiteley’s shops and Tesco supermarket.

At the moment, the 100-strong congregation meet in Gull Coppice Community Centre for Sunday worship and baptisms. But plans for a permanent church building have been talked about for years to serve the growing Whiteley community.

Our diocese and local worshippers have already raised £448,000 of the cash towards the project. And the Anglican Bishop of Portsmouth, the Rt Rev Kenneth Stevenson, has agreed to be patron of an appeal to raise the rest of the money.

That appeal will be launched with a large outdoor service and community barbecue on June 28, on the site of the new church near Tesco. Former Zimbabwe cricketer Henry Olonga will join the congregation for their big day. It will mark the start of the congregation’s ‘Giving and Prayer’ week.

At the moment, Whiteley Church forms part of the parishes of St Peter’s, Titchfield, and St Paul’s, Sarisbury Green. The Rev Lorraine Snape is curate-in-charge of Whiteley Church, and the Rev Bill Day – vicar of St Peter’s, Titchfield – is lead incumbent.

“Building a new church to serve this new community is a real mission opportunity,” said Bill. “We believe that it is God’s will for a dedicated church building in Whiteley. The area cries out for a visual symbol of Christianity, so it’s fitting that the land already laid aside for a church dominates the higher ground close to the hub of the community. And the eye-catching design symbolises what the project stands for.”

Whiteley is a new development, north of the M27 near Fareham, which includes 3,000 homes, a retail park and a designer outlet shopping centre. Building work started in the 1980s and continues today – a further 3,250 homes may be built to the north of the town centre. Its population is overwhelmingly young, with 79 per cent of residents aged under 44.

Church services were first held in people’s homes in 1995, and switched venues a number of times before the community centre was built. Initially the church was a joint venture between the Church of England, Methodist Church and United Reformed Church, and its strong ecumenical links remain. Whiteley Church is a ‘conventional district’, which is a step to becoming a parish in its own right.

With a church electoral roll approaching 100 and a regular congregation of 60, including a busy Sunday School, the need for a dedicated church building has become apparent. Although baptisms are held in the community centre, weddings are held in other nearby churches.

Future fundraising events include a live music night by Whiteley Church music and worship group, a charity auction night and Whiteley Church football and cricket matches.

To donate, suggest a fundraising event or discover more details, contact the Rev Lorraine Snape on gary.snape1@ntlworld.com

or 01489-589205, or Matthew Potts on givingtowhiteleychurch@hotmail.co.uk or 01489-588648, or click on: www.whiteleychurch.org.uk.