A recent review of our building revealed ‘nail sickness’ in the roof,  particularly over the north aisle, and defects in the windows, guttering and drainage. This required parts of the roof to be stripped and re-tiled, and the longer it was left the worse it would become. Water ingress had also made the interior walls stained and flaky so redecoration was recommended.

To preserve our lovely church we believed we needed to raise £60,000 however, as with a lot of old buildings more problems arose as repairs commenced and the total needed went up to £75,000.  This sum has, one way or another, been acheived.

We can now say that we will leave the buiilding in as good a state as we inherited it but we would like to go further.  All buildings require ongoing maintenance and to fund this we have to keep going with our fund raising.  Concerts, recitals, poetry readings, harvest festivals and so on require facilities so we are now raising money to bring water in and out of the building and provide lavatorial facilities so that our future fundraising can be even more ambitious.

The slide show below shows the before and after story

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Vicar

The Reverand Peter Dyson

01243 345334

Church Wardens

Sue Burr and Tamsin Koronka

PCC Secretary Susan Wade

Safeguarding Officer Tory Green

Treasurer  Henry Green

Bank details

MADEHURST PCC

60-01-18 67479464

... reputedly the highest village in the South Downs National Park and with a small population of about 140 (2021 census).

The origin of St Mary Magdalene can be traced back to the 11th and 12th centuries when the flint tower (originally wooden) and nave were built by the shepherd monks of Tortington Priory. The chancel, organ and organ chamber, vestry and north aisle were added in the 19th Century.

Since then few modifications have been made and the village has enjoyed continued worship throughout the 20th and into the 21st century.

During this time, as well as regular services, the church has seen many events, concerts, and special celebrations as the heart of village life. The church yard was extended over the road in the 1930s, and the organ, bells, memorials and tower were restored and refurbished in 2000.

We hope, as a village, to keep our beautiful, peaceful building and churchyards in good order for future generations to enjoy for worship and to mark special festivals and events.

Welcome to Madehurst...