Heritage Lottery Fund Lottery FundedUnlocking the church for the 8.30 Holy Communion service this morning, I was greeted by some significant changes.

We now have lighting again (Yay!!!), though only the high level ones and the new emergency lighting are connected at the moment - all wired to a small and discreet switch panel just inside the new lobby (all the new lights are LED and dimmable, so we can do 'mood' lighting for special events).

My last news item on the re-modelling of the entrance lobby left things on a bit of a cliff-hanger "what is the new lobby going to look like? You'll just have to wait and see...".

Well now you can!

New Lobby Main Structure 03 03 2019

This is the 'solid' bit of the new lobby, which cleverly incorporates some extremely slim cupboards to house the electrics, and is so hot off the press that the plaster is not even dry yet.

It already feels more open and spacious, and I love the way that the new lobby highlights the curved hood over the door - I'd never even noticed it before. Ticks the 'welcoming' box for me so far.

You can also see the new 'tiny but clever' light switch panel on the left.

Patricia Goulding, our amazing Churchwarden informs me that the opening has been measured for the 'new glass' this week, so there's the next cliff hanger...

We WILL have to wait and see, but judging by everything I've seen so far on this mega-project, it will definately be worth waiting for!

Of course, none of this would have been possible without the generous support of the Heritage Lottery Fund, All Churches Trust, the Beds & Herts Historic Churches Trust, the Francis Coales Charitable Foundation, and the Steel Charitable Trust.

So, once again, a sincere 'thank you' to all of the funding bodies and people who have made this project turn from a dream into a plan, then into a reality that will benefit Shefford for generations to come.

Author/Photographer: Stephen Lines

Published: 3rd March 2019