The Full Story
About us ST JUTHWARE
Halstock is a place with an ancient history. The parish includes the site of a Roman villa, and it had a church as early as 840. It has a late medieval tower but otherwise rebuilt in the 1840s and afterwards, most of it to the design of the Catholic architect Augustus Welby Pugin.
The current Church dates from the 15th Century and mid-19th Century, is Grade II listed for the following principal reasons:
* Architectural interest: It is a harmonious, now largely mid-Century19th design, that is faithful to medieval precedents and represents a thorough understanding of Decorated Gothic.
* Interior: Despite some loss of Church furnishings, it is an attractive and spaciously-arranged interior which retains 19th Century fittings such as the font, seating and floor tiles.
* Fittings: The Encaustic tiles in the sanctuary, if they do date from 1846-7, are quite early examples of the tile-making revival that occurred in the 19th Century.
* Group value: There are several 15h and 18th Century listed chest tombs in the churchyard.
The Church is constructed of local Forest Marble stone rubble with Hamstone dressings, under stone-slate roofs with stone copings to the gables.
Except for the tower, most of the Church was rebuilt in 1770 following a fire. In 1845-6 Yeovil architect Thomas Stent rebuilt the nave, porch and the chancel to AWN Pugin’s designs. A series of drawings for the church, dated 1847 and signed by Pugin, are held at the county record office.
In 1959 a chapel was created in the north aisle dedicated to the Saxon saint St Juthware, of the 5th or 6th Century. Her remains are said to have been buried in the original Church as a focus for pilgrimage but were later re-interred in Sherborne Abbey.
Mission Statement
St. Juthware and St Mary’s Church Halstock
The St. Juthware and St Mary’s Church mission is for our church community to be able to offer not only a spiritual resource for the village but events and projects which can benefit people across our village community.
We want to:-
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Improve the quality of life for our community by providing support in a tangible way
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Broaden the range of activities taking place
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Improve accessibility
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Use the building more effectively
Mid Term – Carry out Quinquennial report repairs, install a toilet and small kitchenette
Longer Term – make the building a hub of regular activity that provides support and comfort to those in emotional need and make the Church a truly beautiful, peaceful place to visit.
The Saint Juthware story centres upon her faith in Jesus and his command to care for others as seen in her good works. Building on this we need to ensure that the Church building is preserved for generations to come and that it is fit for purpose. Money raised by the Church will ensure we deliver those facilities. By building a sustainable Church there will be longer term benefits to our community, so that we thrive with a creative spirit, in friendship and tolerance.
Vision
WHAT WE WANT TO DO
Now – Repair and restore the building (especially the roof), install a toilet and small kitchenette. Make the building warm and welcoming. Then we will: -
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Use the building more effectively.
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Improve accessibility and be compliant with basic regulations by the provision of simple toilet and kitchenette facilities.
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Broaden the range of activities taking place.
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Improve the quality of life for our community by providing support in a tangible way.
Longer Term – Make the building a hub of regular activity that provides support and comfort to those in emotional need and make the Church a truly beautiful, peaceful place to visit.
We already provide basic refreshments at every service and a more ample selection for special services and events. This has been a very welcome and well used facility by our congregation. However, many want to stay longer to socialise and this is hampered by the lack of facilities.
In 2025 we piloted several extra worship meetings to test community engagement. They have proved successful and popular and we wish to repeat and add to our events calendar for 2026 and beyond, to further God’s mission locally. We regularly canvass the Parishioners for their views and we act on those suggestions. The provision of a more accessible children’s area, has proved worthwhile.
We feel our historic building has a radically different use to/ from those facilities already provided (village hall and community room). We want to be able to use the building in a more permanent way, so that the community is aware of the rich heritage of the site, hitherto unpublicised. Halstock is a regular route for walkers, cyclists and tourists being on the Medieval Harrow (or Old) Way and has been a place of worship, pilgrimage and welcome for over 900 years.
As our Church is already open 365 days a year, we gather information from our visitor’s book and prayer diary. As a result, we would actively seek to partner with organisations and other charities to provide rural out-reach support for vulnerable people in our community. Having a warm welcoming environment where people feel safe, is a vital part of any recovery journey, be that from bereavement or loss or struggling with life. We would aim to provide a hub for information and signposting which is open daily. Making use of this unique environment for just a “cuppa” in a peaceful and private space, is part of living meaningfully in a rural area.
