St John’s was built between 1402 and 1407 and consecrated as Peterborough’s Parish Church on Sunday 26th June 1407. It became known to locals as The Church in the Market Place. The 600th anniversary of its consecration was celebrated by a series of events and activities that illustrated the versatility of this church building as a venue for music, drama, art exhibitions and educational activities as well as worship.  It is our vision that the reordering which St John’s presently requires will better equip it to host an ever wider range of activities as part of an appropriate and relevant ministry in the heart of Peterborough in the 21st century.

St John’s, as the historic parish church of Peterborough, and as a large Grade One listed building set in the heart of the city, can have something of a flagship role within the City Centre, as part of the City of Peterborough’s City Centre Master Plan. A residential population is to be restored to the city centre, whilst the scope for week-day ministry and mission in the heart of the thriving city is boundless.

We are engaged in active cooperation with the City Council concerning the exterior surroundings to the building. We supported the demolition of the Norwich Union building immediately west of the church, and welcome the landscaping of the area surrounding the church that will remove the need for railings on the south and west sides and enable the church to be perceived as an integral part of a renewed and vibrant city centre. To enhance this, the west and south entrances to the church will be made more attractive and accessible with the addition of glazed doors.

Internally, the need for toilet facilities, meeting rooms and better welcome and hospitality facilities has long been recognised, and explored since at least 1910.

We aim to reorder the layout of the inside of the church by the removal of the pews west of the crossing, to free up an open space in front of the west end. In the south-west corner of the church we plan to have a small room/ crèche area and two toilets, suitable for disabled use. In the corresponding north-west corner we plan to have a larger room for educational use. In the south east corner in front of the west screen we plan to have a fully fitted kitchen with servery, and in the corresponding north-west corner we plan to have a welcome area and parish office Each of these would have separately available heating and be suitable, therefore, both individually and in combination, for use both for church purposes and, where appropriate, for use by the wider community and for commercial hire.

We envisage that the development of a seven-day a week life for the building would generate new worship expectations, and opportunities for both community and commercial growth, leading to subsequent east-end reordering to reflect this, in the years to come.

Our plans have been drawn up by Julian Limentani, our architect, to achieve 21st century facilities in a Church that remains at the heart of the city – serving the growing population of Peterborough city centre for the next 100 years and beyond. We urge you to support these plans, as we proceed to the fundraising and implementation stages.