Wealdstone Methodist Church
Our Beliefs
The calling of the Methodist Church is to respond to the gospel of God’s love in Christ and to live out its discipleship in worship and mission
It does this through:
Worship
The church exists to increase awareness of God’s presence and to celebrate God’s love.
Learning & Caring
The Church exists to help people to grow and learn as Christians, through mutual support and care.
Service
The Church exists to be a good neighbour to people in need and to challenge injustice.
Evangelism
The Church exists to make more followers of Jesus Christ.
The Twelve
There are twelve things that we can do as individuals or as a church community to transform our lives as we encounter God through these activities:
God loves you unconditionally, no strings attached. That’s the good news.
A Methodist Way of Life is a way of saying yes to the good news.
1. Pray
2. Worship
3. Notice
4. Care
5. Learn
6. Open
7. Serve
8. Flourish
9. Challenge
10. Tell
11. Live
12. Share
The Team
David Nixon
Paul Phillips
Our Purpose
Our Mission Statement:
Loving and serving God in this Community
Wealdstone Methodist Church provides regular public acts of worship open to members of the church and non-members alike. It provides a sacred space, a building, for prayer and contemplation. It explains and commends Christianity through sermons, courses and small groups. It carries out pastoral work, including visiting the sick and the bereaved. It provides a weekly “Friendship Café”, a fellowship meeting (The Wesley Guild), a Toddlers’ Group and a Baby Bank. It offers its halls for hire, subject to availability, to community groups.
The Methodist Church
The beginnings of the Methodist Church
The Methodist Church has its origins in the 18th-century evangelical revival movement. It was founded primarily by John Wesley and his brother Charles Wesley, along with other like-minded individuals.
John Wesley (1703-1791) was an Anglican clergyman and theologian who became a key figure in the Methodist movement. He was born in Epworth, Lincolnshire, and attended Oxford University.
On May 24, 1738, John Wesley had a life-changing experience at a church service in Aldersgate Street in London. While listening to someone reading from Martin Luther’s preface to the Epistle to the Romans, he felt his heart “strangely warmed” and experienced a profound assurance of God’s love and forgiveness. This experience deepened his faith and understanding of God’s grace, which would become a central tenet of Methodism.
Following the Aldersgate experience, John Wesley began preaching in the open air, taking the message of the gospel to the masses beyond the confines of church buildings. He emphasised the need for personal conversion and a direct relationship with God, encouraging people to experience God’s grace firsthand.
As the movement gained momentum, John Wesley organised groups known as “Methodist Societies” or “Classes” to provide spiritual support, accountability, and discipleship to members. These societies were crucial in spreading Methodism throughout England and beyond.
Although Wesley never intended to create a separate denomination, the rapid growth of the Methodist movement, combined with some theological differences and resistance from the established Church of England, led to a gradual separation. After Wesley’s death in 1791, the Methodist movement officially became a separate religious denomination, known as the Methodist Church.
This is how Methodism came into being. To see how Wealdstone Methodist Church started please visit the History page.
Methodism today:
The Methodist Church is still organised in a methodical way using many of the structures introduced by John Wesley. However, the Church is quite pragmatic, and is willing to make changes where they seem desirable.
The Methodist Church is inclusive and committed to Justice, Dignity and Solidarity.
We believe that all people are uniquely made in the image of God, and we aim to live this out in the Church and in our communities.
For more information about Methodism and the Methodists please visit https://methodist.org.uk
Harrow & Hillingdon Methodist Circuit
Our church is part of the Harrow and Hillingdon Methodist Circuit, which is a network of 17 churches in the London Boroughs of Harrow and Hillingdon. Each church exists to express the love of God in Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit in worship, learning, caring, service and evangelism.
Spotlight on Wealdstone
The First Wesleyans in Wealdstone
From 1837 a cluster of shops and cottages grew up along the small railway station known as Harrow Station and later renamed Harrow and Weald Stone Station. Established religion was late in arriving as until 1864 there was no church or chapel nearer to Wealdstone than Harrow Parish Church (St Mary’s) or the Methodist Chapel on Lower Road. Mr Warnes’ carpenter’s shop at the foot of Wealdstone Bridge on the Harrow side became a meeting place. By 1883, the small community had grown sufficiently for them to rent a room in a cottage at a cost of 8 shillings a week. Later, they rented a whole house at £15 per year, sometimes using accommodation at the Bridge School for their services and Sunday School.
The Tin Tabernacle
In 1885 land was purchased at the corner of what is now Rosslyn Crescent and Station Road. An iron building was erected and, in 1901, Rev Arthur Walters became our first minister.
Locket Road Methodist Church is Built
In 1904, the present church was built. It could seat 400 people in the main part of the church and 80 in the gallery. The Locket Hall was seen as a temporary structure which could easily be used as an enlargement of the church. This has yet to happen! The opening ceremony was on 24 November, 1904, with Rev Marshall Hartley preaching.
New Premises Again
In 1939, the Montrose Hall, Guild Room and Caretakers flat were opened and a new organ dedicated. Now the flat is let to provide an income for the church.
Harrow Weald
Methodists in Harrow Weald, once the “posh” part of Harrow, opened a “Mission Room” in a cottage near Brockhurst Corner in1890. But the small society did not last long and was closed. It was revived in 1959, firstly in Whitegate School and then meeting at All Saints Church. Land for premises was purchased on Elms Road but numbers decreased and the members amalgamated with the society in Wealdstone. The land was sold to the Churches Housing Association and it was this money that was put towards the transformation of our church in 1974.
The 1974 Transformation
The design for this refurbishment was bold with the focus on a simple wooden cross in front of a large orange curtain. The ceiling was lowered, as was the pulpit, making the building warmer and more intimate.
Two Centenaries!
In 1983 we celebrated the centenary of the Methodist Society in Wealdstone. In 2004 we celebrated the centenary of the building. Then, in 2006, there was a further major refurbishment with comfortable chairs replacing the wooden pews.
The Twenty-first Century
Times change and we have had to adapt. During the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s the church had a large Sunday School, a thriving Youth Club and popular uniformed organisations. The Youth Club, together with other clubs from the Harrow Circuit, took part in may national MAYC events, including the annual show at the Albert Hall.
Now we have few young people but we do have the added richness of being an even more multi-racial community with people from many different backgrounds attending our meetings and services. The Wesley Guild is still meeting after 115 years. We are still offering services to the community through our Toddlers’ Group, the Friendship Café and, most recently, Digital Inclusion Classes to help people access health and other services through the wonders of modern technology.
Along with all other places of worship, we had our difficulties during the Covid pandemic and many activities had to stop. But the congregation stayed together with online services, meetings and weekly email newsletters.
We give thanks to all those who have worked energetically and with insight over the past two hundred years to make the church in Wealdstone what it is today.
