A CHURCH has withdrawn from consideration as a potential operator of the new Matthewsgreen Community Centre.

Kings Church Wokingham announced that it was pulling out of contention to run the centre, which will be part of the Matthewsgreen development.

The Church released the following statement: “The continued growth of the church, both in its adult congregation and the children’s work, has made us question whether the facility, when delivered in 2020, will be suitable for our needs. It was always a compromise, requiring the possible use of the adjacent school facilities on a Sunday.

“It was recognised that, as a church, Kings draws people from right across the Borough and beyond, and that the focus right now is on equipping them to live out their Christian lives in the community where God has placed them.”

The Matthewsgreen development will include hundreds of new homes, a school, a community centre and a SANG.

Cllr Stuart Munro, executive member for business, economic development and strategic planning, said: “This news has come as something of a shock to the council considering the large amount of hard work done by Kings Church and council officers to get us to this point of nearly being ready to begin building the new community centre and primary school. 

"The council was supportive of Kings Church ambitions for the new community centre and was pleased by the amount of public engagement they conducted to understand the needs of local residents.

“Whilst their decision is disappointing, it will not delay building plans for the community centre and primary school and we will now be identifying other opportunities for securing an operator.”

Wokingham Borough Council is now interested in talking to any local groups or organisations who have a serious interest in being operating the Matthewsgreen community centre.  Anyone wanting to discuss this can contact Mark Redfearn, lead council officer for localities services, via (0118) 974 6000.