Our History 

This history of Faversham Baptist Church (until 1971) relies heavily on '100 Years and More: The History of Faversham Baptist Church' by Rev W R Weeks published by the Faversham Society in 1977 as No. 14 in the Faversham Papers series.
 

Early Baptists in Faversham

The present Baptist church in Faversham was founded in 1867 but there were Baptists in the town long before that date. Henry Hart was a 16th-century religious radical and leader of the "Freewillers," an early Protestant separatist group centred in Faversham and other parts of Kent during the reigns of Edward VI and Mary I. He rejected the official Church of England's doctrine of predestination, emphasizing human free will and distrusting institutional church authority. He almost certainly rejected paedobaptism and this non-conformist group, associated with an ‘anglicised type of Anabaptism’, met in the house of a Mr Cole in Faversham c1549-50. After June 1550, members of the group fled to Bocking, Essex, to avoid persecution. Nevertheless, members of the movement, which now numbered some sixty people, were arrested - some imprisoned and others released on bail and bound to appear before the Privy Council. During the fanatical persecutions under Mary I, two leaders of the movement, Humphrey Middleton and Nicholas Shetterden, were burnt at the stake.

There are no records for the next 250 years or so, but by the early nineteenth century Baptists were congregating in the town. Thomas Barnes of Boughton described coming to Faversham in 1811 where he found about 'six in number meeting together in a room . . . they used to read sermons, and at times Mr. Samuel Eyles Pierce preached for them. In 1813, Mr. Pierce formed them into a Church.' (as recorded in 'The Earthen Vessel and Christian Record for 1878', ed Charles Waters Banks, Vol XXXIV). Samuel Eyles Pierce recorded in his memoirs that on Christmas Eve 1813 he had caught the stage from London to Maidstone, then walked to Faversham, preaching twice the following day, and three times the day after that (it being the Lord's day) before then walking to Canterbury for the New Year. 

Five years later a small Calvinistic Baptist meeting house was opened on the south side of Partridge Lane. This was superseded in 1833 by ‘more convenient’ accommodation in Gatefield Lane. Erected by individual subscribers and supported by pew rents, this was opened on Good Friday 5th April 1833. In 1840 there were 69 church members with 170 children in the Sunday School. It joined the East Kent Association of Particular Baptist Churches in 1841, but thereafter the picture is not clear. By 1847 it was extinct.  There was a brief revival in 1857 when the Reverend R. C. Etheridge came to reopen the Gatefield Lane Chapel, but this did not last for long. The premises in Gatefield Lane were subsequently used as a place of worship by Plymouth Brethren and c1885 the building was sold and turned into the Faversham Club.  
 

1867-1874 Rev A Bax 

A fresh start was made in 1867. In January a former member of the Canterbury Baptist Church, who had moved to Faversham, discovered a few Baptists there and consulted his minister, Reverend A. W. Heritage, who encouraged him to go ahead and make further contacts. At the same time, Mr Heritage brought the matter before the committee of the Kent and Sussex Baptist Association. The association could not accept any responsibility but promised to give every possible assistance if a new start could be made. At the end of April, the use of the lecture hall of the Faversham Institute, opened in 1862, was hired for £1 a Sunday, including lighting, attendance and cleaning. On Wednesday 1st May, a public meeting was held in the lecture hall to inaugurate the new venture. There was not a large attendance. On the following Sunday, 5th May, Reverend A.W. Heritage conducted two services in the Institute. About 35 people attended in the morning and more than 50 in the evening.

The famous Reverend C.H. Spurgeon of the Metropolitan Tabernacle, London, gave practical encouragement. He gave generous loans free of interest and also arranged for one of his students, Mr Alfred Bax, to conduct services in the Institute each Sunday from 19th of May to the end of the year. The ministry of Mr Bax was much appreciated and the congregation increased. By the end of the year the morning congregation numbered 150 and the evening 300. There was no collection but boxes at the doors received free-will offerings. The Kent and Sussex Baptist Association made a grant of £15. The few Baptists in the town were greatly heartened and after further encouragement from Mr Spurgeon, it was decided to go ahead and try to recommence the Baptist cause in the town. On Sunday 24th November, Reverend A.W. Heritage was the preacher. The morning congregation was not less than 300 and there were nearly 500 present in the evening. A baptismal service was held the next day in Canterbury Baptist Church. There were four candidates who had been interviewed at Faversham the day before.   Tuesday 26th November 1867 was the new birthday of the church. About 100 people sat down to tea. The secretary of the Baptist Association, Reverend R. C. Etheridge of Ramsgate, presided at the meeting which followed. A carefully drawn-up resolution was put to the meeting and carried unanimously. Eleven foundation members added their signatures to the resolution, which made it clear that they were Particular Baptists.

The first church members meeting of the newly-formed Baptist Church was held on 3rd February 1868. Twelve rules, occasionally referred to as ‘regulations’, were drawn up and approved. One rule was that ‘no one speaks more than once on the same subject (except for explanation)’. Another rule was that membership of the church would be forfeited by any member absent from worship during four successive meetings or from the Lord's table during six months ‘without sufficient reason’. Another rule mentioned as sufficient ground for church discipline, ‘immoral and fractious conduct and the denial of any essential part of the Bible’. Of the eleven members, two of them were appointed deacons.  In April 1868 a letter of thanks was sent to the Gatefield Lane Assembly of Plymouth Brethren for their generous help in allowing the use of their meeting house and baptistry for a baptismal service on 8th March.  By 1868 there were 31 members of the Baptist Church. ​In 1870 there were prolonged discussions at church meetings on the question of ‘open communion’. It was finally decided to allow non-members to come to the Lord's table provided that they gave evidence of a change of heart, but they must first be visited by messengers appointed by the church. In the same year, the name of a woman communicant was written off because she had unsettled the minds of some by what was considered to be unscriptural and unprofitable teaching. A Sunday school was begun in 1871, and a building committee was set up ‘to superintend all necessary business connected with the erection of a Baptist chapel in the town’.

Wednesday 31st July 1872 was a great day, for the Reverend C. H. Spurgeon himself, the most popular preacher of his time, came to Faversham to lay the foundation stone of the new Baptist church building and preach in the Institute. The stone can still be seen where he laid it. Behind it is a bottle containing the rules of the church and a record of its formation.

The Faversham Mercury of Saturday 3rd August carried a full account of Spurgeon's visit. A site had been selected at the bottom of St Mary's Road, by then mostly built up, and the contract for building the church had been let to Lewis Shrubsole, a prominent local figure who was to serve as mayor no less than six times. He was making rapid progress and expected to have the building completed by November. The design of the church, reported to the Mercury, was ‘very plain’. In a building 60’ x 37’, accommodation for about 400 persons was to be provided at a cost of £1,800, towards which about £880 had been raised before the stone laying ceremony.

The weather was good and a vast crowd of between 1,500 and 2,000 people turned up to witness the ceremony. The Mayor presided and the proceedings began with a hymn. The first speaker was Reverend R.C. Etheridge who had been associated with the abortive attempt to revive the Gatefield Lane Chapel in 1857 and had gone on to take a close interest in the congregation formed 10 years later. Ministers from the town's other non-conformist churches were at the ceremony and Reverend W. H. Hill of the Congregational Church spoke on their behalf. ‘We wish Mr. Bax every success in his work for Christ and hope his new chapel will be filled with a sterling congregation. I and my colleagues are here as friends of Christ and we're therefore glad to see another monument erected to the Redeemer's sacrifice and love in our behalf.’

This was the first point to which Reverend C H Spurgeon himself drew attention in his long address. ‘I've had very great delight in meeting so many Christian ministers and this shows that they entertain a brotherly spirit and kindly feeling towards one another. I only wish I could say the same of every other town I visit.’

'No doubt, on an occasion of this kind, people will expect me to say something about our principles as Baptists. Well, be it known to all men that those who worship here will be known as thorough Protestants. And yet, I don't know that they are Protestants exactly, for the Baptists existed before the Protestants. They were the old Catholic and Apostolic Church of the first ages, from which the other churches sprang. Nevertheless, we're glad to associate with the younger branches of the family!'

Baptists are also called dissenters, but I don't know that they are. I believe our friends who go to the steeple houses yonder, the parish church, dissent from us as much as we do from them. As far as I can tell, the dissent is about equal on either side!’

After a few more comments in like vein, Spurgeon went on to congratulate Mr. Bax and the congregation on what had been achieved. As long as they remained united and stood together, God would stand by them. They would have to cultivate generosity too, and he emphasised that it was as much the job of the congregation as the Minister to attract people to fill the chapel.

There is no record of any decision to arrange for the opening service of the new chapel at which Reverend C. H. Spurgeon preached in February 1873. But there is a reference to a decision to celebrate the first anniversary of the opening in January 1874. 

After a ministry of seven years Rev Alfred Bax was compelled to move away because of ill health. 


1875-1877 Rev G Williams

In 1875, Rev G. Williams began a short but happy and vigorous ministry. In his first year, 20 new members were added to the church. He moved in 1877 to Astley Bridge, Bolton, Lancashire, where he served for many years.


1878-1892 Rev C A Slack

In 1878, Rev C. A. Slack commenced a long ministry of 14 and a half years. There was widespread trade depression in 1879. This was bound to affect the life of the young church. At the end of 1881, the annual financial statement revealed a balance in hand of one half penny! Discussion about attendance at the Lord's table took place and it was decided in 1882 to close the communion service to non-members of the church. Signs of new life began to appear. In August 1883 a day of thanksgiving for the clearance of the debt was held. This special day began with a prayer meeting at 7am. An afternoon service was held followed by a tea at which 200 people sat down. A public meeting followed in the evening. In the following year, the Baptist Missionary Society was asked to send fifty collecting boxes. Later, a missionary secretary was appointed. The church was only nineteen years old and the course seemed set fair when trouble came. Several families left and progress was halted for a number of years. It is well to draw a veil over what happened. A church meeting in 1896, 10 years later, decided to do just that. It was then resolved that decisions at twelve church meetings in 1886-7 should be rescinded and the records withdrawn. This was done by tearing out several pages from the minute book and inserting, in place of the destroyed pages, a short record of non-controversial decisions in that period. In spite of internal difficulties, the church was not unwilling to be involved in the life of the town. In 1885-6, the schoolroom was lent to the Sunday School Union for a united monthly prayer meeting. In 1887, the church agreed to take up an annual collection towards the expenses of the newly erected Faversham Cottage Hospital. A report of the annual church meeting in the early part of 1890 refers to the ‘smallness’ of the church.


1893-1895 Rev F T White

The next minister, Rev Thomas White, remained only two years, years during a period of financial stringency. The financial stress at this period is shown by the arrangement made in July 1893 that the minister should receive the weekly offerings. The balance of his salary, £75 per annum, was to be made up at the end of each month. Further light on the financial stress of the church is shown in the decision in 1894 to grant the minister the sum of five shillings for providing hospitality for a visiting preacher. In 1895 it was decided to take up pew-to-pew offerings at each service. In 1894 a Tract Society was formed to distribute copies of Charles Spurgeon's sermons. There were signs of progress in 1894 when 33 new members were added to the church. Erasures and transfers of membership meant a loss of 16 members with a net gain of 17.


1895-1899 Rev T T Minchin

Again and again, in the minutes of church meetings, there are references to the transfer of members. Baptists move to a new town and almost as soon as their transfers of membership are received from their previous church, they are off again. At times there were frequent changes in the offices of the church and in the diaconate. Occasionally the minister would act as church secretary and there were frequent changes of caretakers. Sometimes they were called ‘chapel keepers’. One was styled the ‘chapel woman’ and she was dismissed because she would not attend the services. Her successor was elected at a church meeting by ballot.

The church has also suffered from short pastorates. Omitting the two longest pastorates, the average length of the others was four years. There have been seven pastorates of three years or less. Here are some simple statistics: in 1896 there were 11 transfers of members away. In the following year there were 10, offset by 13 transfers in to membership of the church. Between 30 and 40 members were present at the annual church meeting in January 1897. At one evening service a few instruments were brought into use but we are not told what they were or how long the experiment lasted. The annual church meeting a year later was attended by 45 members. It was reported to the Annual Meeting in 1899 that there were 81 members and 266 scholars in the Sunday School. The members were ‘entertained’ by ‘an exhibition of the gramophone which had been hired for the evening’.


1899-1906 Rev G Stanley

At the beginning of 1901 there were 96 members. The Baptist Church joined the newly formed Faversham Free Church Council. One of its activities was the arranging of a United Free Church watchnight service.

Church discipline was a reality. Grave charges had been made against a deacon. His resignation was accepted and his name was erased from the church roll. It was at this time that the method of election of deacons was changed. Double the number of deacons required were to be nominated, one half by the minister and deacons, one half by the church members.

In 1903 it was stated: ‘We have suffered as we did last year through the exodus from the town of many of the members of the church and congregation. The Sunday School lost six good workers.’ In the minutes, the opinion is expressed that ‘empty seats repulse newcomers’. On the more cheerful side was the news that two Bible classes were held regularly, as well as a minister's class for young people. At the beginning of 1904, there were 85 members, 173 Sunday School scholars, 70 children in the Band of Hope and 25 Christian endeavourers.

The Church was now being run on a financial shoestring. In April 1905, the quarterly financial statement showed a balance of eight shillings, two and three quarter pence. The Church, however, decided to send a delegate to the inaugural Congress of the Baptist World Alliance held that year in London. In the same year the choir was promoted from the front pews to the platform which had been altered and improved to give a more finished appearance.


1906-1910 No Minister

The minute book tells us that 1906 was ‘a year of adversity’. Numbers were down, money was tight. In July, the minister resigned after a pastorate of seven years and the church was in debt to him. The Kent and Sussex Baptist Association offered to lend the church £25 so that Mr Stanley might receive what was due to him before he left the town at the end of August. He received £10 before he left, but in December a sum of £2 10 shillings was still owing to him. This was subsequently paid. During a period of great difficulty, Mr A. Hodgkinson of Herne Bay served for more than a year as lay pastor. His help was much appreciated.

In 1908 the membership was only 59. A number of members had left the town to seek work in other places. In 1909 trouble came again. At a church meeting in September there were criticisms that the deacons and the renovation committee had transacted business without consulting the church members. At a special church meeting in October, four deacons, the secretary and the treasurer resigned. At the same meeting, one member ‘kept on talking, totally disregarding the chairman's ruling, and the meeting ended in confusion’. 

‘Kemsdale’ is first mentioned in June 1909. A Sunday school treat was held there in July and an invitation was extended to the members of the church and congregation. This was the first of many happy occasions at the home of Mr and Mrs Edward Vinson in Herne Hill.


1910-1913 Rev H Turner

Mr Henry Turner, a student at Spurgeons College, London, was invited to the pastorate in November 1909 and was offered a stipend of £150, the largest paid by the church to that date. A member of the church generously promised to guarantee that amount. The numbers attending the church began to grow. In 1911 there were 89 members. In the same year it was decided to extend the premises by providing a kitchen on the ground floor and a lecture hall on the first floor. The extensions were to cost £885. A building fund was set up with a loan of £50 from the Baptist Building Fund. The stone laying ceremony took place on 26 September 1911 and the additional rooms were officially opened on 6 March 1913. In that year, Reverend H Turner moved to Belfast and later to Scotland where he served for 30 years as Minister of the John Knox Street Church in Glasgow. Later, he was honoured in being elected President of the Baptist Union of Scotland.


1914-1917 Rev H R Byatt

In 1914, the ‘Faversham Brotherhood’ was commenced and met in the Baptist Church on Sunday afternoons. It is not known whether it survived the First World War. In November 1914, the church provided a reading room for soldiers. In 1916, there were 80 members. Some were serving in the army or navy. During the winter, the caretaker was unable to manage the heating apparatus. It was therefore decided that the gas lights in the church should be lighted one hour before each service, if necessary!


1917-1922 Rev W H Buss

In October 1917, Rev William H. Buss commenced a ministry of five years. Among those taking part in his introduction, induction and recognition services were Rev Dr John Wilson of Woolwich, a former President of the Baptist Union, and Rev John Doubleday of Sittingbourne. Soon after the end of the 1914-18 war, a memorial tablet in the church was unveiled by Lady Alexander, the wife of Sir Sidney Alexander, MD, Mayor of Faversham, 1910-19.

It was at this time that the complete renovation of the premises was undertaken by a team of voluntary workers and the cost of the materials was met by a generous donation by a church member. Church membership now stood at 80. There were more than 250 Sunday school scholars. Mr. Oliver Harris was the devoted leader of the intermediate school with its ten classes. These were great days in Sunday school work. An attendance of 250 was quite usual. Most of the teachers were young people working locally.

The young men's Bible class was conducted by Miss Elsie Vinson. Miss A. Robertson led a similar class for young women. Other activities included a teacher's training class, a band of hope and a young people's fellowship.

Rev W.H. Buss moved to Braintree in 1922 and during his ministry in Essex was married to Miss Eileen Palmer of Faversham. After leaving Braintree, he served for many years as a full-time hospital chaplain in London. He also served as a chaplain to the forces for three years. In 1961, he retired to live in Tankerton.


1922-1924 Rev A J Hodge

Rev Alexander J. Hodge served at Faversham, his first pastorate, for two years. In later years, he was happy to recall the splendid and loyal help of the church officers and also the fact that it was in Faversham that their first child, Mabel, was born. Later, she married Rev Alexander Matthews, both of them serving for some years with the Baptist Missionary Society in Congo. Mr. Hodge ministered for 32 years in Auckland, New Zealand, adding a doctorate in philosophy to his academic honours. He later returned to England and from 1969 until his retirement in 1972 was minister of Northchurch Baptist Church, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire.


1925-1931 Rev L A Wilson-Haffenden

The minute books of the church record record some important events during the ministry of Rev Lawrence A. Wilson Haffenden including his marriage to Miss Elsie Vinson. Sheppey House, Stone Street was acquired as a manse. The sum of £65, a record to that date, was given to the Baptist Missionary Society. The magnificent organ, one of the finest in the county, the generous gift of Mr Edward Vinson, was dedicated on 3rd June 1926.

In November 1928, Mr Sydney F. Clark entered Regent's Park Baptist College. He graduated in Divinity at London University and served in pastorates at Preston, Blackpool, Nottingham and Sheffield. In 1963, he was appointed the General Superintendent of the North Eastern Area of the Baptist Union.


1932-1937 Rev A C Kerr

Mr. A. Calvin Kerr, BA .D, a student from Regents Park College, commenced a vigorous ministry in 1932. In 1934, Mr. Frederick Ash, ARCM, was appointed organist. Except for a period during the Second World War when he was on active service, he gave talented and devoted service for many years. He went on to be organist and choir master at St Catherine's Church, Preston-next-Faversham.

A significant event during the ministry of Mr Kerr was the decision of the church to become an ‘open membership’ church. The communion service and church membership were now open to all Christians regardless of denomination. Believers baptism was no longer a compulsory qualification.

Mr Alfred Hulkes began long and loyal service to the church. Soon after becoming a church member, he served for some years as church secretary. He was mayor of Faversham 1953-54 and 1954-55.

A noteworthy occasion was the visit of Rev Dr Charles Brown of Ferme Park Church, London, for the Church and Ministers' Anniversary on 19th November 1936.


1937-1940 Rev S C Bastable

War clouds were already showing up in 1937 when Mr Sidney C Bastable came from Bristol Baptist College to his first pastorate. It says much for the courage of minister and people that, in spite of occasions when air raid warnings and dogfights overhead reduced the number of worshippers, not one Sunday service was cancelled. The Baptist Church was the only one in the town of which this could be said. Courageous enterprise was shown in the redecoration and renovation of the church building at a cost of about £200.

In spite of war conditions, there was much musical enterprise. Five choir festivals reaching a very high standard were arranged with the assistance of singers from the Baptist churches of Canterbury, Herne Bay, Margate and Whitstable.

In 1940, Reverend S. C. Bastable moved to Ashley, New Milton, and later served for three years with the Baptist Missionary Society in Jamaica. His subsequent visits to Faversham on several occasions were much appreciated.


1940-1942 No Minister

It is relevant to record the fact that in 42 years, during the first half of the 20th century, official statistics show a loss of 90,943 Baptist church members and 79,634 children, an average yearly loss of 2,165 members and 1,896 children. Church statistics are sometimes optimistic. The real losses may well have been worse.


1942-1947 Rev J E Compton

After a ministry of twenty years in Colchester Rev James E. Compton accepted the invitation to Faversham. Unfortunately, in the early days of his ministry in Faversham, he had to undergo a major surgical operation and was out of the pulpit for a year. He returned to his work and laboured with courage and devotion, but died suddenly in 1947. It was remarkable that his last sermon was on ‘the Saviour's last will and testament’. Not many hours afterwards he died. A very beautiful communion tablecloth was embroidered by his wife and presented to the church.


1947-1949 Rev W H Hercock

Another short pastorate followed. Rev Wilfred H. Hercock had to contend with post-war difficulties. There were few young people in the church. Rationing was still in operation and the church was being run on very limited financial resources. The Baptist Home Work Fund responded to a call for help, and in 1948, the Kent and Sussex Baptist Association offered to lend £100, but it is not known if it was necessary to accept the offer. One of Mr. Hercock's recollections is of the kindness shown to him by many friends during a time of illness.


1950-1965 Rev W R Weeks

Rev William R Weekes BA BD came to Faversham in August 1950. He had previously ministered in County Durham, Yorkshire and Lancashire for 33 years. A student of Bristol Baptist College, he had served for one year as Assistant Minister at Queens Road Church, Coventry. In the First World War, he was officiating Chaplain to the Forces with the United Army Board. Recommended for a commission as a Chaplain to the Forces, he failed to pass the medical test.

Some of the outstanding events in the life of the Church during this period are noted here.

The formation of the Faversham Contact Club.

Each year, for six years, in connection with the municipal elections, a pre-election service was held on the Sunday evening prior to the local elections. All the candidates were invited to be present and most attended. The theme of each service was Christian citizenship.

For some years, Mr Weekes, who was the leader of the Sunday School, conducted classes in preparation for the scripture examinations of the National Sunday School Union. The response and the results were most encouraging.

Civic services were a feature of the earlier years of the pastorate. The mayor, aldermen, councillors and borough officers attended in-state on these occasions.

Mr Alfred Hulkes was twice Mayor in 1953-54 and 1954-55. He appointed Mr Weekes as his chaplain. A notable date was 24th May 1953 when the civic service on Mayor's Sunday was held in the Baptist Church. As far as can be ascertained, this was the first time that this service had been held in a free church in the town. Mr Hulkes was also appointed a Baron of the Cinque Ports and in that capacity was present at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in June 1953.

Mr Weekes was invited by the Vicar of Faversham to preach in the parish church at the pre-coronation civic service on the afternoon of Sunday 31st May 1953.

A beautifully bound book ‘in remembrance’ was presented to the Baptist church. In it were inscribed the names of church members whose relatives and friends made gifts to beautify the church and to enrich its worship. The first name was that of Miss Nellie Ottaway, who died on 13th October 1953 at the age of 32. She had given long, loyal and very efficient service in the Sunday School and for some years as Church Secretary.

On Sunday afternoon 13th October 1957, the members of the East Kent District of the National Union of Agricultural Workers held their Harvest Thanksgiving Service. A band led the procession from the railway station to the Baptist Church, which was well filled for the occasion.

There were 33 baptisms during this pastorate. A unique baptismal service was held on Whitsunday 17th May 1959 when all four members of one family were baptised.

On Thursday, 29 September 1960, a special service was held to celebrate Mr Weekes' 10th anniversary in the pastorate and the completion of 45 years in the Baptist ministry. The guest preacher was the Rev Dr G. Henton Davies, Principal of Regent's Park College, Oxford.

Many young people and other friends were in frequent attendance at the two Billy Graham campaigns in London in 1954 and 1955. The church undoubtedly received a spiritual uplift. Decisions for Christ and of dedication to Christian service were made.

Mr Weekes retired at the end of 1965 after a ministry of 50 years in the Baptist denomination. There was a large gathering at the farewell meeting on 31st December. An atmosphere of goodwill and fellowship pervaded the evening. Mr Weekes' value as a townsman was emphasised by the Mayor, Alderman A. L. King, who recalled Mr Weekes' part in giving the town a Contact Club which had found a meeting place and centre of discussion for the men of the town. The Vicar and Rural Dean, the Rev J. Stuart Martin, the Rev P. G. Cochran (Methodist), and Father J. J. Kelly (Roman Catholic), all agreed that Mr. Weeks had contributed much to the changing atmosphere of church relations in Faversham. Other speakers included representatives of the Kent and Sussex Baptist Association, the East Kent Baptist Ministers Fraternal, the British and Foreign Bible Society and Sittingbourne Baptist Church. Another speaker was Rev E. P. Blackaby, who had been a fellow student at Bristol Baptist College.

On 16 September 1962, the League of Young Worshippers and Sunday Afternoon School were discontinued and were transferred to Sunday Morning to form Family Church. 

The Faversham Council of Churches was set up in 1965. Mr Weekes was appointed the first president and was inducted to office by the Vicar of Faversham at a united service in Faversham Parish Church on Trinity Sunday evening. Mr Roger Pask BA of the Baptist Church gave much thought and many hours of sacrificial service as Secretary of the Faversham Council of Churches in the difficult early years.

The Women's Fellowship was well established on Wednesday afternoons with consistently good attendances. The meetings were usually of a devotional character with occasional cookery demonstrations. The members gave active support to the District and Association Baptist Women's League and Women's Missionary Auxiliary rallies, also to annual sales of work at the church.


1966-1970 Rev R C Bennett

Rev Richard C Bennett began his ministry in Faversham in October 1966. He and his wife had served for many years in North India with the Baptist Missionary Society, and they and their family had to return to England in April 1965 because of ill health. Their heart was in the Baraut work and their departure was regretted by their Indian friends and by their colleagues.

In the 1960s, a change in the lives of many people in Faversham began to be apparent. An increasing number of people left the town each morning by train five days a week. At one time in this period, it was estimated that there were 1,000 commuters each day and the numbers grew. Increased housing on the town's outskirts resulted in many young couples coming to live in Faversham, the husbands travelling away to work each day. The Baptist Church welcomed a number of these and gained much from this, though travelling shortened the amount of time available for church activities.

A ‘younger women's evening group’ was started, meeting fortnightly, and also boy and girl covenanters, both junior and senior, as forms of missionary outreach to those not committed to Christ in the town.

This period also saw the completion of the first phase of a plan to repair and modernise the church building, a heavy financial burden for a small group of people with limited financial resources.

United activities with other denominations in the town developed, particularly in the realm of ‘Christian Aid’, and included opportunities for Bible study and united worship. The fact of having an ex-missionary as minister gave the church a fresh awareness of the uncompleted task of world evangelism.

Centenary celebrations were held on 9 and 10 of September 1967. On Saturday 9 September, there was a reunion tea with greetings from former ministers, representatives of the Baptist Union, the Kent and Sussex Baptist Association, the Canterbury District, the Churches of Faversham and the Borough Council. Among the many messages received was one from Mrs Amy Compton, the widow of a former minister, Rev J.E. Compton. Rev David Boone, M.A., General Secretary of the Kent and Sussex Baptist Association, was the preacher at an evening service.  Sunday 10 September was marked by the visit of Rev D.S. Russell, M.A., B. Litt, D.D., General Secretary of the Baptist Union.

After four years of ministry at Faversham, Mr Bennett left for Southampton in 1970. His departure was regretted by many, the regret being a little lessened by the knowledge that Mr Bennett was invited to share in the new venture of a team ministry for Shirley Baptist Church and three other neighbouring churches.


1971-???? Rev N C Anderson



1984-1997 Rev David Price

Tribute paid to Jennie and David Price at their farewell.

One of David's favourite quotations is from Wordsworth:

"That best portion of a good man's life
His little, nameless, unremembered acts
Of kindness and of love."

I want to change that quotation, so that it reflects what we all feel about Jennie and David, not those "unremembered acts", but those remembered acts of kindness and of love. We can all speak of those, the hospitality at the Manse, the hospital visits. I could stay the night at the Manse, if I was worried. I remember being taken into hospital by David and Jennie. There has been constant visitation of the sick, the lonely, the housebound, the bereaved, the disabled. There has been a refuge at the Manse for those who after visiting at the Cottage Hospital were in anxiety and grief. We all have our thankfulness to express innumerable acts of kindness and of love.

The second of David's expressions (and this is characteristic of him) is "Feel free" He has created an atmosphere in the church services and in the life of the fellowship in which people have felt free to be themselves. There has been no necessity to observe a set pattern of thought or of behaviour, and there has been no sense of "This is the done thing".

An example of "feeling free" is that of George R who remembers David with great affection. Baptised as a teenager by David, he felt free to leave us and go on to worship at the Mission. Now he is entering University to study theology, while his wife trains there to be a teacher. George hopes to become a priest in the Anglican church.

David has encouraged people to grow in the Chrıstian faith in whatever way is best for them. He is wonderfully free of dogmatism.

His third favourite expression is "in our midst". That has been the hallmark of his ministry. He has built up a church fellowship. Before he came, there was a degree of despondency. That has all changed, Greetings from his previous churches express their appreciation of his gift in building up the fellowship. His first church at Ledbury writes, "We can assure David that the seeds he planted are still bearing fruit".

David, you are leaving a growing and a united church. We thank God for your ministry and we are grateful to you and to Jennie for your care over us through these past years. We wish you both God's blessing on your future.