Cradley Heath Baptist Church - The Present Day

The Present Day

In spite of dwindling numbers, the congregation has continued to meet. During 2007, the question of continuing in the present building was discussed. After much debate, it was decided to continue. The 175th Anniversary was celebrated in December 2008.

As well as the Sunday morning meeting, Cradley Heath Baptist Church is involved in providing for the needs of people in local nursing homes who cannot get to a place of worship. There is also a short open-air meeting for hymn singing on some Saturdays, sometimes in the market, or on other open spaces just before Christmas.

Community activities include a "Toddlers Group" on Friday mornings, and a gardening club on the first Thursday evening of the month. The Cradley Heath Flower & Gardening Club was originally planned for the summer of 2009, but is so popular that it continues to meet during the winter. On 5 November 2009, the Special Demonstrator at the Club's Open Evening was Andrew Lloyd, Florist from Stourbridge. He is the NAFAS Area Chairman for Three Counties & South Wales and has been in the Floristry Business for 27 years. He presented 'A Floral Sparkler' and it was a sell-out event, with an audience of nearly 90 people.

The Christmas activities in December 2009 included a "Christmas Spectacular" concert featuring children from nearby Springfield Primary School and a special guest appearance from international rising star Charlie Green, a semi-finalist on "Britain's Got Talent" in 2008. 250 tickets were sold to raise funds for urgent repairs to this listed building.

The Church is involved in an annual Christmas toy collection. In 2010, this was donated to local charity Loaves 'N' Fishes to provide toys to needy children. The collection was boosted by the generosity of the people of Cradley Heath through the local Tesco's supermarket which kindly provided a collection point.

During the winter of 2009-2010, the church building suffered from thieves taking lead from the roof. This was at about the same time as lead was taken, twice, from the roof of the nearby public library building, and from a number of private houses. The church building suffered from significant amounts of water leaking in. The pipe organ alone required repairs estimated at about £4,000

During the first quarter of 2011, a disabled standard toilet was built in the Choir Vestry, as part of upgrading the building to 21st century standards. Being a listed building, the construction had to be such that the original building features were not damaged. A grant application to English Heritage was made during 2010. The building was judged to be of sufficient historical interest that a grant of £106,000 was awarded in March 2011, leaving an estimated £60,000 to be found to cover major building repairs including dry rot damage and the first replacement roof on the original 19th century building.