Christ Church Teddington sold its historic church building in 2015. Sadly, the church had become too large and difficult to maintain. Although, the congregation kept the adjacent 1970s community hall, and services moved there. However, this new home was unsuitable as a working church with low ceilings, poor natural light, and no street presence.

Christ Church Teddington commissioned EMJ Architects to create a new, permanent home for the church, refurbishing and extending the community hall. In 2016 planning permission was approved for our proposal. In May 2017, work to transform it began on site.

The overall design creates a sequence of uplifting spaces that lead visitors from the street to worship. A new glazed entrance, visible from the road, acts as a beacon marking the church’s presence in the public realm. In addition, new garden spaces within the church grounds have created places to wait and reflect, fitted with oak benches.

The entrance lobby provides a welcoming gathering space with views through a high-level window to the congregation’s historic church building. A new office faces the entrance allowing the minister to see and greet visitors. The central corridor uses new sun tunnel skylights to bring daylight into the centre of the building.

The main hall is divided by a bi-folding oak partition, allowing the building to perform multiple functions simultaneously. In addition, the main worship space’s existing roof structure has been replaced with exposed composite oak and stainless steel trusses, maximising volume and natural light in this most important space.

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