The History of The Church on Fairford Leys

In the early 1990s the town centre churches in Aylesbury were invited by the Ernest Cook Trust to develop a project to create a new church in the heart of the Fairford Leys development. The Church of England, the Roman Catholic, the United Reformed and the Methodist Churches then began the long process of planning what was to become the first ecumenical (i.e. more than one denomination) church to be built in Aylesbury. An architect was appointed, Maguires of Thame, who began to design the church, together with the Fairford Leys (community) Centre. Construction began in 2001 and the church opened for services in March 2003.

Local Ecumenical Partnership Constitution

The Vision

With 27 churches in and around Aylesbury, what does the new church seek to offer the residents of Fairford Leys?

We rejoice in the diversity of Christian perspectives and seek to draw on the rich traditions of liturgy, music and theological insight of the churches that came together to create the new church.On the outside of the church appear the words:

Where Gods Is There Is Love


Where God is there is Love

This is a paraphrase from the New Testament which proclaims that within the church we worship the creator God and in so doing become aware of his love for all his children. In accepting that love, we experience the love for others as we seek to fulfil the teaching of Jesus to “love God and neighbour”.

Visitors speak of the warmth of the welcome, sensing the presence of God and feeling at ease within a loving Christian Community.

 

The Practice

We seek to work closely with the Parish Council and in particular with the Fairford Leys Community Centre to serve the needs of the local community.  For example, with the community centre we jointly run a Youth Club, providing a safe and fun environment for our young people to meet together.