Defunct Windsor church could be turned into a single house instead

A disused Methodist church in Old Windsor could be turned into a family home if RBWM agrees.

The application (ref 25/01718) seeks permission to convert the former Old Windsor Methodist Church in St Luke's Road into a three-bedroom house.

The church was built in the 19th century and features traditional Methodist architecture. Most of the proposed changes are internal only. Part of the rear extension would be demolished to create a garden space measuring about 154sqm.

The partial demolition ‘is considered acceptable in principle’ but ‘must be ‘sensitively designed’ to ‘respond positively’ to the original building’s look.

Two tandem parking spaces are proposed at the front, while one off-road parking space would be lost.

The church closed in December 2023 due to a declining congregation and rising maintenance costs. Members now worship at Windsor Methodist Church, which holds a larger congregation – and the younger generation prefer to attend online services.

The application says the building was marketed for 18 months with no interest from community groups, and there are ‘sufficient’ alternatives for faith and community use nearby.

This is important, because RBWM requires evidence that a building is both no longer needed and no longer viable for community use before it will give the go-ahead to turn it into private housing.

There was a request from someone asking to make use of the building as a makeshift food bank while the former owners awaited the sale of the building – but due to the 'unsafe' structure of the extension, it ‘was deemed not appropriate.’

Applicants said they posted more than 100 letters to the local community and held door-to-door conversations with neighbours, and ‘no objections’ to loss of community use were raised.

“No one wanted the noise [or] disruption of cars coming and going,” applicants wrote.

Applicants also considered ancillary facilities that would be lost, such as parking and community hall space.

They contacted Old Windsor Memorial Hall, several local schools and pubs/clubs and discovered that four of these places offer community halls for hire, all within a three-mile radius of Old Windsor Methodist Church.

Moreover, all have ‘ample parking’ on site – and taking the church out of community use would reduce the strain on parking, applicants argue.

They wrote: “We personally feel that using the building for community services will require substantial parking… and would need to facilitate permanent staff parking.

“It would be unsafe for the residents of Old Windsor to further congest their parking… and would create a build-up of queuing traffic during peak times.”

“The proposed change of use will bring a vacant and deteriorating building back into active use, contributing positively to the built environment,” the applicants concluded.

“We believe The Old Methodist Church would be well-suited as a residential property, preserving its original appearance to maintain the community's history and prevent further disrepair or vandalism.”