Fordingbridge Museum column

Column by Fordingbridge Museum is sponsored by Adrian Dowding

Church naves have been used as community centres for centuries

By Julian Hewitt, Fordingbridge Museum

In the Middle Ages there was a delightful tradition in English churches called church ales.

These fundraising events were similar to modern church fetes but ale was sold by the churchwardens to raise money for church repairs and to provide alms for the poor. The nave of the church was sometimes used for stalls and entertainment.

Historians, GM Trevelyan and JG Davis promulgated the idea that in medieval times church naves were used like modern day community centres. Plays, dancing, markets, judicial procedures and eating and drinking went on there.

It was easy to hold events in the naves in medieval times because there were no seats for the congregation. People would stand for services. If you were old or weak you could sit on stone benches provided at the base of the nave walls. Some people claim this is the origin of the expression, ‘the weak go to the wall’.

In the 15th century at the end of the Middle Ages, pews began to be installed. The Protestant Reformation in the 16th century saw pews installed in most churches. Worshippers were sometimes able to rent pews and ‘pew deeds’ recorded this. Many churches had box pews – seats enclosed by wooden panels that were accessed by a door. Prominent members of the community would occupy the pews nearest the altar, or with the best view of the service.

All Saints Church in Chalbury near Wimborne has some magnificent examples of 18th century box pews as well as a triple-decker pulpit and a musicians’ gallery. The largest pews were occupied by tenants of local large farms. The Earl of Pembroke and his family had a raised seat on the north of the chancel closest to the altar.

Another church with 17th century box pews is All Saints at Minstead. The local gentry had their own pews complete with the comforts of a sitting room, a private entrance, and fireplace. This church also has a rare three-decker pulpit and two galleries. One of these was for musicians and the other possibly for the poor.

In both churches there was seating set aside for the servants of the gentry who were obliged to attend church regularly.

The Taylor Review into the Sustainability of English Churches in 2017, and the 2004 report ‘Building Faith in our Future’, both argue that there is a tradition of church naves being used to provide community services to help regenerate their areas. Many Anglican churches are changing Victorian pews for individual chairs. This enables them to be used for a variety of non-religious purposes reaching out to more than just regular churchgoers. Musical concerts, plays, public meetings, displays, cafes and fundraising activities are accepted uses of church naves in many parishes. Often, especially in rural areas, church buildings that are unused for much of the week, are being used by the wider community. In urban areas, churches often provide a warm refuge for the homeless and food banks for the needy. However, rather disappointingly, I have not yet heard of the reintroduction of church ales!