Bishop blesses new Holy Trinity chapel

A special celebration to mark the completion of two major projects at Stratford’s Holy Trinity Church was held last Sunday.

The Bishop of Coventry, the Right Revd Dr Christopher Cocksworth, attended a service of blessing and rededication at the church, marking the restoration of St Peter’s Chapel and the building’s new £550,000 South Side extension.

Work to restore St Peter’s Chapel began in January last year and has involved opening up the space and revealing the chapel’s spectacular American stained glass window.

The chapel was originally dedicated as a First World War memorial and incorporates a plaque remembering members of the RSC who died in the war.

The new South Side extension is the first major extension to the chapel in 500 years and houses a new clergy vestry, storage space and toilet facilities.

Both the chapel and extension were finished in time for a Royal visit by Prince Charles during April’s Shakespeare celebrations.

The Vicar of Stratford, the Revd Patrick Taylor, said: “The chapel now resembles the way it looked when dedicated as a memorial to the fallen, in 1920. It is the spiritual heart of the church.”

Professor Ronnie Mulryne, chairman of the Friends of Shakespeare’s Church, which has raised £50,000 towards the chapel, said: “This is a proud day for the Friends. We have almost completed our fundraising for the interior of St. Peter’s, though we shall now have to take on, with the Parochial Church Council, the even more costly task of raising funds to repair the exterior.”