More information regarding Westbury here and the services for our church and Benefice are here. We hope you can join us.
St Augustine's Church
It is our 850th anniversary this year - it was founded in 1175! We are going to plan some events to mark this important event so do watch out for these.
Also watch out for further information re marking the 80th anniversary of D Day on the 8th May. We will be ringing the bell and also holding an open session in the church with 40's music and refreshments.
We held the Act of Remembrance on the 10th November with about 50 attending. In addition to the Parish Council and School, we also had representatives from the family of the bomber crash, the Brackley Royal British Legion and RAF Croughton.
Despite Storm Bert, the Christmas Bazaar was held on the 24th November and was very successful. Thanks to all who organised and supported.
We had some lovely candlelit Christmas services that were well attended.
Quiz
The Westbury Fun Quiz night is back - Saturday 22nd February.
Tickets can be obtained from the shop in Westbury or contact them on 01280 841775 or westburyshopandcafe@gmail.com.
You can come as an individual or a team and as always the emphasis is on fun for all ages.
If coming as a team make sure you let the shop know the size of your group and we will reserve a table (max 8).
We hope to see you there!
Fabric Update
We are working on a number of projects at the moment as part of preserving our lovely 12th century village church that is 850 years old this year.
We are very grateful for the support from our Friends organisation FOStA who raised funds to replace one of our windows that was in a poor condition and in danger of collapsing. That window is at the rear opposite the porch and the window now looks amazing - you can see the before and after below!
We have also replaced some broken panes in other windows and filled a gap in the tower wall so the church is now more weatherproof and warmer.
The repairs to the church boundary walls are now fully finished as you may have seen and should last for many years! Some of the walls had previously collapsed with others being undermined and in danger of falling. Thanks to all the individuals who supported the restoration plus also Beachborough School.
We are going to straighten the church notice board that has been taking on a distinct lean plus are also looking at repainting the main gates in the Spring. The major churchyard works will then be complete.
We are grateful to those who clean the church and prepare the flowers. The churchyard team will also be recommencing activity in the Spring. New volunteers for all these activities are always gratefully received!
Wifi
Our 12th century village church has moved a bit closer to the 21st as we now have wifi installed! Simply select "St Augustines Visitor" and accept the terms to use. We are also trialing a "Collectin Sumup" device to make it easy to donate by card, phone, watch etc so we are really moving with times.
Benefice & Westbury Website
We have our St Augustine website section on the Benefice website that includes information about the church opening, building and also the history.
In addition, Paula's addresses are now available to listen to on the site.
All the services are listed along with lots of extra information that we hope you will find useful.
Brackley Food Bank and Baby Basics
We are supporting the Brackley Food Bank and you can leave donations in the red box in the church. Full story here including what types of food they are seeking.
We are also supporting Baby Basics and information on how you can support both these charities is on the web site.
Parish Giving
To be able to pay our running costs and to maintain the church through these fabric projects, we need ongoing regular giving from the community. If you can support us, you can do this via the Parish Giving Service and thank you – it would mean a lot.
You can also support our fabric for FREE while shopping online by clicking here or on the image at the bottom of this page. We currently have 21 supporters but more are gratefuly appreciated! The money raised so far has allowed us to fix some broken panes and fill a big hole in the tower!
FOStA
FOStA is a charity set up to help maintain the fabric of the church. if you would like to know more, or contribute in any way to this effort, please contact westburyfosta@gmail.com.
We are delighted that the window on the south aisle, opposite the church door, has now been replaced and a window on the North aisle restored and cleaned. FOStA also helped us replace our lights with LEDs to reduce our running costs.
They will soon be planning new events and they will keep you informed on progress if you sign up with them.
It costs over £20,000 each year to keep the church open and maintain the churchyard. If you are able to help at all, please click here or on the Parish Giving Scheme logo below or support us through your online shopping for free here
