St Deinst, Llangarron, on the Welsh border in Herefordshire, remodelled its entire north aisle to create The Garron Centre. This is a venue for coffee after services, weddings and funeral receptions, coffee mornings, and for wider community events.
The Garron Centre hosts a monthly Community Café, art exhibitions, a pop-up restaurant, classes including French and willow weaving, film afternoons, concerts, quiz nights, and private events such as birthday parties.
The building project repaired the north aisle, removed the old pipe organ, created a mezzanine floor, built a kitchen and toilets, put in sliding doors between the new space and the rest of the church, and added underfloor heating, broadband, and solar panels.
It has created a hub for a wide range of social and cultural activities, reducing isolation for the young, the disabled, and the old. This is especially valuable in such a scattered rural community, with no school, shop, or pub.
