The churchyard through the years
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In January 2017 the copper beech, on the corner of St James's Road and Park Road, became unsafe after being attacked by a giant fungus and had to be felled. Read the article A sad farewell to the beech tree. A new bench made from beech wood was installed by the south porch. It was given to the church by the local council after they had cut down the tree. A new beech was planted in its place. There was an excellent turnout for the new Gardening Club which started in December 2017. Various parts of the churchyard were tidied up and four trees that had been given to the church by the Mayor of London’s 'Trees for Sacred Spaces' project were planted. In the spring of 2018 the area around the bottom of the tower was cleared and shrubs and daffodils planted. During the course of the year several saplings were planted in memory of members of the congregation. The Gardening Club contined to meet every few months and in the autumn work on the new wild flowerbed started in earnest. This was part of the idea of managing the churchyard as a local wildlife conservation area. See the photo album Gardening Club. During 2018 the Eco-church Team worked towards an award as part of plans to become a Local Wildlife Conservation Area. The newly-established Gardening Club started creating new wildlife areas as well as maintaining existing areas, in conjunction with the local council, who remained responsible for the general upkeep. A strategy for future development of the churchyard was drawn up, and Derek clarified when he or the archdeacon was required to consent to work. Work on completing the north-west corner of the church garden was imminent.
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