St Mary le Strand
Volunteering opportunities for students with an interest in arts, heritage, history, architecture, cultural partnerships, media, music, data, and customer service.
ABOUT US: 

St Mary le Strand

 

St Mary le Strand is a Grade 1 listed building but it is also so much more. It is a place where people come together, reflect and enjoy a sense of shared cultural heritage.

 

St Mary le Strand was built in 1714-21 to the designs of the renowned Scottish Architect, James Gibbs – his first building on his return from studying in Rome. It is often said to be one of the UK’s loveliest Baroque churches, with its fabulous plastered, curved and coffered ceiling, unparalleled in Britain.

 

As a local church, St Mary le Strand is committed to delivering Christian, Public and

Cultural benefit, all of which sit at the heart of the Jewel in the Strand project.

 

The Jewel in the Strand

 

On the face of it, this project is about a beautiful 18th-century church, but it’s about people and communities, not bricks and mortar. As part of a large-scale development project we will conserve, restore and open up this wonderful building. The driving force behind each and every physical output is the impact that it can have in the lives of the individuals and communities who occupy the Strand Aldwych for leisure, work and study.

 

The vision for this project is that St Mary le Strand will be a restored and redeveloped church building, with a renewed mission and ministry at the centre of this regenerated area.

 

Volunteering opportunities

 

We regularly post ongoing and one-off opportunities to get involved supporting the Jewel in the Strand project and/or church events. Previous examples include stewardship for a son et lumiere installation receiving positive national press coverage, and posting and creating social media content.

WHY OUR WORK MATTERS: 

St Mary le Strand is an inspirational and peaceful place for Christian worship. We are proud that it is an inclusive church where we welcome and serve everyone. We celebrate every person and don’t discriminate on grounds of race, identity, gender, or sexuality. We are truly ‘open to God and open to all’. 

 

The vision for the Church is for it to be a sympathetically restored and redeveloped, with a renewed mission and ministry, at the heart of the regenerated Strand-Aldwych district. It will transform into a place that is relevant to the 21stC, maximising on space and presenting flexible and up-to-date facilities, attracting new audiences and ensuring that the Church can be accessed and enjoyed by everyone. 

OUR VALUES: 
Respect, Trust, Positivity, Teamwork, Service, Inclusivity.
THINGS WE ARE PROUD OF: 
We are proud of this beautiful inspiring building, the acoustics are excellent for concerts and its ceiling is like no other. Simon Jenkins believes it to be the ‘finest 18th church building’,
WHAT WE LOOK FOR IN OUR PEOPLE: 

We are looking for people with an interest in heritage, music, public engagement and enthusiastic volunteers to help us tell stories of the church in different ways.

 

 

HOW WE ARE DIFFERENT: 

We are different because we are at the start of re-launching this 300 year old church with a major restoration project in this new pedestrianised area.