St. Andrew’s with Castle Gate URC was formed in 1975 when the former St. Andrew’s URC and Castle Gate URC joined to form a united congregation.
Services
Our services are held on Sunday mornings at 11.00 am with Holy Communion being celebrated on the first Sunday of each month. Services at other times are arranged periodically, for example at festival times (Christmas and Easter), and we sometimes have evening “discussion services” (usually on Zoom). Our church has a strong musical tradition and our four-part choir provides an anthem each week. Hymns and the anthem are usually accompanied on our Walker pipe organ. On the second Tuesday of each month we have a service of prayer and meditation with Taizé music.
For more detail about our services, we share a guide HERE.
Travel
We have a small car park – and use of a larger parking space on Sunday mornings. Access to parking is off Chaucer Street.
We are a short walk from the city centre which has a very good bus service and is on the tram line. (The nearest tram stops are the Nottingham Trent University stop and the Theatre Royal stop.)
Children
Our children share with us the first part of the morning service before they then leave for their own activities in the Junior Church and Youth Group. There is a crêche for the under-threes.
We have a Saturday Club once a month for children of our Junior Church and Youth Group and their friends.
Minister, Elders and Church Officers
We are currently seeking a new minister to serve us and the other United Reformed Churches in the South Nottingham Area.
Our services are then led by various people including retired ministers who are members of our congregation, visiting ministers of different denominations, our members, Mark Hodgson (who is a Nationally Accredited Lay Preacher) and Rebecca Smith (who is a Locally Recognised Worship leader), visiting lay preachers or members of our own congregation.
The Church Secretary, Deputy Secretary, Assistant Secretaries, Treasurer, Finance and Governance Officer and members of the finance team are involved in the day to day running of the church together with the Elders’ Council and its Sub Groups.
The members of the Elders’ Council are the Trustees of the church, and we also have Trustees of the church property. However, the ultimate authority of the church is the Church Meeting. Church Meetings are held quarterly and are open to anyone although only full members of the church are entitled to vote.
Members
At St. Andrew’s with Castle Gate we have about 180 members and adherents.
We are concerned to support and care for the whole congregation. The Elders support the minister in visiting members and we are also fortunate to have a network of members called Family Friends who are ready to support people in our congregation who have young families.
Activities
Our Church is involved in a wide range of activities.
We are concerned to serve the local community and our buildings are the base for four important activities supporting the young, the elderly and the sick:
Nottingham Abbeyfield Society
Stroke Club
There are also many groups mainly, but not exclusively, for our own church members. Some of these are purely social, others are concerned with enriching our spiritual lives:
Belgravians
Advent meditations
Book Group
Craft Club
Drama Group
Keep Fit Club
Lent study/discussion groups
Ukulele Club
As a church we make our main charity fund-raising efforts on behalf of Christian Aid, through the URC Commitment for Life scheme, and The Leprosy Mission. We have a regular stall selling fairly traded goods, support local charities through our Communion Benevolent Fund and take special collections to support emergency appeals when necessary.
Nottingham Trent University
Our church building is surrounded on three sides by the buildings of the Nottingham Trent University and some students attending the university worship with us.
And…
- We have earned our Silver Eco Church award.
- We are registered with the Student Christian Movement.
- We have an Honest Church statement.
