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This profile explains the
size and background of our parish in Mitcham, Surrey. For a full
map of the area covered by our parish, click the map on the right.
Population: approx.17,000
1. The church and its buildings
The worship
The church worships in the modern Catholic tradition, focused
on the Parish Eucharist each Sunday at 10am. There is also occasional
Sunday evening worship, and Eucharists on Tuesdays and at major
feasts.
The congregation
On a typical Sunday there will be about 70 communicants, 20 children
and a total congregation of 90+. There is a mix of ethnic backgrounds,
of which the majority are South Londoners. There are Junior Church
activities in the Parish Centre. The congregation is in good
heart.
The church building
The church was totally rebuilt around 1825 on an ancient site.
Refurbished between 1988 and 1998, and now resplendent in its
original orange sand render, it has a modernised interior which
is light, warm, and conducive to worship. Pews have been replaced
by upholstered chairs, and the floor is carpeted. In 2005/6 major
works were done on the roof, and more work will be carried out
during 2007.
Vicarage site developement
The old Vicarage site
(of about 1.5 acres) was sold to a developer in 1999. By 2001
the old vicarage had been converted into six flats and a new
terrace of nine maisonettes were handed over to South London
Family Housing Association. A new Vicarage was built in a corner
of the site. There is still a large private open space. In the
first few years after the development there were serious problems
with disruption and misuse. This is now improving.
The Parish Centre
Part of the site development,
the Centre has been given to the church at no capital cost. It
accommodates the parish office and Junior Church groups. Community
groups and independent churches also use the Centre, and there
is the occasional child's party. The Centre is not used to its
full capacity, but still creates income for the church's use.
It is run by a management team of Church members, and there is
no warden.
2. Other information
Traffic
The road system is seriously
overloaded, especially in the centre of the parish and along
Church Road. Transport links have been improved with the introduction
of Tramlink through Phipps Bridge, but the centre of Mitcham
is still logjammed by traffic that is mainly going elsewhere.
Parks, greens and commons
The eastern half of the
parish contains Mitcham Common - largely uninhabited. In the
centre of the parish are the greens -The Canons and Cricket Green.
In the south (between the newly-developed Tramway and the River
Wandle) there are Morden Hall Park and Ravensbury Park.
Industry and shops
The parish includes Grove
Farm Industrial Estate (Willow Lane) and a spattering of light
industry in Church Road and elsewhere. Shopping facilities in
the parish are limited, with the main concentration of shops
on London Road between Glebe Court and The Fair Green.
Town Centre development
The town centre is far
from satisfactory, but improvement plans are under way, with
the expectation that Asda will move in. Many buildings in the
central area will be knocked down and re-modelled. Transport
and traffic systems will be re-routed. There is a consultation
process going on, with offices in London Road opened in 2006
for the duration of this major development programme.
Housing
As well as Victorian
and Edwardian terraces, there are smart houses round the Cricket
Green and various blocks of low-rise flats such as Glebe Court.
Newer developments include Lowry Crescent, Saxonbury Court, and
the Phipps Bridge estate, much of which was redeveloped during
the 1990s.
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