The Vicar of an historic Staffordshire church has today welcomed the decision of the Court of Arches to grant permission for the installation of a staging platform or dais after its original application was rejected by the Lichfield Consistory Court.
The Revd James Graham, Vicar of Holy Trinity Church in Eccleshall, Staffordshire, said: "Eccleshall Church Council is very pleased that the Court of Arches has given us permission to go ahead with our plan to have a raised area at the front of Holy Trinity Church at the east end of the nave. With the success of the appeal, we can go ahead and make this Grade I listed church – which has been altered many times since it was built in the 1100s – more useable by the church and the community, including the two schools in the parish (which both back the alteration).
“Our plan has the support of the Diocesan Advisory Committee for the Care of Churches. It also has the whole-hearted support of English Heritage. In a full letter of encouragement, English Heritage recognises the need to adapt the church, and says that the character of the church will not be compromised. Another important advantage is that the ramp incorporated in the alteration will benefit disabled people, including young people in a local special needs school.”
He added: “The latest five-yearly inspection report on Holy Trinity commended us on the way we have treasured the church. This prompted the Archdeacon of Stoke to write to us congratulating us on this fact. It is excellent that we can now move forward in a positive spirit, not only in continuing to care for the church fabric but also in making this necessary adaption to ensure that the church's worship and community use can flourish."
Holy Trinity Church in Eccleshall is one of the most historic churches in the Midlands. It is likely that a Christian community existed here before Saint Chad became the first Bishop of Lichfield in AD669; and it is thought that land at Eccleshall was given to Chad, on which was eventually built Eccleshall Castle.
The castle was home to bishops of Lichfield from before the Norman Conquest until it was sold by Bishop Augustus Selwyn in the late 1800s. A number of former Bishops of Lichfield are buried within the church; which still has the historic seat, reserved for the Bishop, within it.