Parish ProfileWestminster Record | March 2015

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This year witnesses a milestoneanniversary as the last fourcopies of the original MagnaCarta are reunited at the BritishLibrary. The famous document,which has become thecornerstone of British law, wassigned in 1215 at Runnymedeon the Thames in Surrey. Thismonth the Record visited thenearest parish to Runnymede inour diocese: Our Lady of theRosary in Staines.

We arrived at Staines on aWednesday morning after ashort hop from Waterloo stationand crossing the road to thechurch. There was a flurry ofactivity outside andpandemonium once inside as theMother and Toddler Group wasin full swing in the church hall.There were at least 30 toddlersrunning around playing, joinedby parents drinking tea andsocialising as their children andgrandchildren enjoyed thesecurity of the setting. In themiddle of it all was Parish PriestFr Philip Dyer-Perry whowelcomed and introduced us tosome of the mothers who servedus tea and tempted us with cake.It was evident in the first fewminutes of being there that thiswas very much a welcoming andopen parish.

Although a relatively smalltown with few residential areas,Staines is a fairly affluent andstable town, quite different to theplace that was infamouslyparodied by Ali G in the early2000s. Fr Philip describes thetown as a place that coupleschoose once they are marriedand want to settle; many will

Staines: A Parish for All Ages

then stay in the area for a longtime. This trend is reflected inthe parish statistics from 2014:there was only one marriage inthe parish but 27 Baptisms, 28 First HolyCommunion candidates and 28 Confirmandi.

The parish is very young atheart and ‘skewed to youngfamilies’. Heathrow Airportprovides employment for manyin the parish; whilst the nearbyM4 corridor offers goodconnections to jobs in centralLondon and nearby towns suchas Ashford and Basingstoke.Migration to the area has beenfairly low but there are smallgroups of Polish and Spanishparishioners and a smattering ofother nationalities.

To sum up the parish in aword: busy. There seems to be anendless stream of activities andgroups using the church hall orspaces and all ages are cateredfor. On Wednesday afternoons,the Mother and Toddler Groupgives way to the ‘WednesdayWord’, which is like ‘Sundayschool on a Wednesday’ forchildren of Reception age to Year6. The Youth Club meets once amonth and enjoys film nightsand days out together.

Recently a Young Adultsgroup has started meeting once amonth to discuss some serioustopical issues, such as theCharlie Hebdo attacks, and thensocialise in a local pub. TheAdult Group meets periodicallyduring the year and looks atsocial, moral and religious issueswith guest speakers and moretime to socialise.

The interior of Our Lady of the Rosary

Founded: 1890Mass Times: (Sat 6.30pm), 9, 11Address: 59 Gresham Road,Staines, TW18 2BDTelephone: 01784 452381

Website: parish.rcdow.org.uk/staines

On Mondays the SeniorsGroup comes together tosocialise and enjoy tea and cake,sometimes in the local gardencentre for a change of scenery.During half term Fr Philiparranges a parish trip which isopen to all. The days out are agreat channel for Fr Philip’s loveof trains and there are manyphotos in the church of largegroups on trains and at stationsin anticipation of the day ahead.

It is evident that even thoughthe parish itself is relativelysmall, with a capacity in thechurch for 215 and an averageattendance just over 600, there isa lot going on all the time tokeep Fr Philip on his toes. Heseems to thrive in theatmosphere, describing himselfas ‘non-stop’ and a ‘bithyperactive’.

The church itself is moresquare than rectangular, withwhite and blue walls and someexposed brick work. It has nopews but rather individual seats,which means it is morecomfortable but it can be hard tosqueeze everyone in at busytimes. The church has a deep,white curved sanctuary with alarge gap between the altar andtabernacle. But even this has afunction. In a truly modern twiston the Mass, the back wall abovethe tabernacle doubles as ascreen for projecting hymns and

prayer responses. For those inthe wings who cannot see theprojection, two LCD TVs arefixed above the seats to serve thesame function. Fr Philip saidthere was originally someunease over this bookless formof Mass but everyone has comeround to it now. As long as youhave ‘a teenager behind thepillar pressing next slide onPowerPoint’ the system works well!

Although the parish iswelcoming and open to thosewho are members, Fr Phillip,never content, believes the futureof the parish should be outward-looking so that it serves thewider community and not justthe congregation itself. He isambitious and forward-thinkingand wants to ensure long termdevelopment for the projects that

By Chris O’Callaghan

the parish has begun. But thisyear is principally a time ofcelebration as the parish marksthe 125th year of its founding in1890. As well as an anniversaryMass with Cardinal Vincent on 5July, there will be a pilgrimage toLourdes and Paris in October, aflower festival in the gardenspace behind the church and ahistory exhibition to chroniclethe last 125 years. The future,much like the present, is lookingvery busy in Staines.

The original 1890 stained glass windows in the corner of the Church

Artwork produced by the young people from the Wednesday Word club

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