The Hub
CHRIST CHURCH W4
Our vision is to be a ‘Beating Heart’ of the community by “Welcoming People Home into God’s Love”.
The intention is to expand the facilities of Christ Church W4 Acton Green and to integrate these fully within the community, providing a place for worship and friendship and ensuring everyone feels accepted, and valued.
The Benefits
Remove unsightly prefabricated buildings that can no longer be used.
Provide new spaces that will be used by the church on a Sunday and by the community during the week.
Include a soft play room and informal meeting spaces for young families to enjoy and socialise.
New staff accommodation to help retain church staff and develop broader church Leadership.
The new pavilion building will provide an interesting and high-quality edge to Acton Green Common, increasing safety and security and improving the Conservation Area.
Christ Church Acton Green is part of a wider group of churches called Christ Church W4, which includes Christ Church Turnham Green.
Since the building was saved from redevelopment in 2014, the membership has grown to 330 people
The Sunday morning service attracts over 150 people and 90 children attending Sunday school and youth groups
There has also been a growth in attendance at church held events, as well as community and specialist group meetings, as part of an extensive outreach programme
It is a vibrant church that has hosted all sorts of church and community events, such as:
The annual Chiswick art festival
Large Christian gatherings like the LIFT youth events, Diocesan youth roadshows, and many other events
It also hosts school activities and events throughout term time and has been piloted as a wedding service and reception venue and a concert event space.
The church’s ability to serve the community is currently constrained by the existing buildings - so much more could be done with better facilities. Additional space is required to meet our existing needs, accommodate future growth, and provide a more useful resource for the community.
Key Issues
Only capacity for seating 266 people in the main church
No meeting room(s) for use by the community
No space for children’s Sunday school (kids have to walk to nearby houses to meet in their groups)
No kitchen (large events require ovens hire)
Poor toilet provision with only 3 WCs
No storage space (events require hiring tables and chairs)
Young Leaders
Our ambition is also to provide on-site accommodation for church staff. This will enable the church to recruit, train and develop young Christian leaders.
This has been difficult achieve due to the cost of housing in West London. We have relied upon the congregation to provide accommodation for some of our worship and youth leaders, which is not sustainable in the long term.
Proposed Ground Floor
The ground floor is organised around a centralised ‘Hub’ space, providing a welcoming point of arrival from which all rooms can be accessed. This includes a glazed entrance and canopy at the western end to provide a new entry point to the building.
A separate entrance is provided for the residential accommodation at first-floor level within a secure ‘front garden’.
The proposed ground floor accommodates the church’s primary functions for both weekend and weekday activities, while also providing high-quality community meeting and play spaces. These improvements strengthen the relationship with Acton Green Common by creating greater activity along the site frontage and increasing natural surveillance of the common. This includes a new terrace with outdoor seating at the eastern end of the site.
The Hub centred to the scheme
Soft play located away from sensitive rooms
Retaining as much of the existing church’s envelope as possible
Community spaces applied to address service days and to close off for AA and recovery groups
Increased bathroom capacity
Large kitchen for events
Increased storage provision
Level access throughout the space
Improved landscape
Improved relationship with Acton Green Common
Internal Spaces
The Hub will link the community spaces with the main church. The brickwork and windows of the Victorian church will be visible within this space, and the kitchen at the end will serve tea and coffee.
There will be new flexible spaces at ground floor level which can split into four 50m2 spaces, or be opened up to create a bigger room (above centre).
The living accommodation above will be exclusively for church workers, with each bedroom having an attractive angled ceiling and a window overlooking the common (above right).
The building will be designed to be as sustainable as possible, with an ambition to use a timber structure.
Proposed First Floor
The living accommodation at first floor provides seven bedrooms for church workers, with a dedicated shared kitchen/living room and external terrace. Each room has an en-suite bathroom, double bed, storage and a desk with seating in a small living area.
The bedrooms and communal space are accessed from a communal corridor which provides views towards the church building and overlooks the proposed green roof.
Design Principles
The extension to the church will be a new pavilion fronting Acton Green Common, creating a strong civic presence and a focal point for the surrounding public realm.
Drawing inspiration from the historic “park pavilion” typology found in London’s parks, the design is conceived as a flexible and welcoming community building that supports worship, gathering, learning and public activity.
The pavilion is designed as a contemporary architectural addition that complements the historic character of the Church. It acts as an outward-facing gesture, strengthening the Church’s presence on the common and fostering a greater connection between the Church and the wider neighbourhood.
The design approach for the pavilion is achieved through a set of five key moves summarised as follows.
Removal of the condemned scout hut and associated satellite outbuildings to declutter the site and unlock space for a coherent new extension.
Expanding the pavilion footprint to provide flexible and generous accommodation for Sunday service groups and a range of community activities.
Integrating the new community spaces with the existing church through a centralised shared hub, improving circulation, connectivity and opportunities for informal gathering.
Placing a green roof above the The Hub with skylights to add daylight into the circulation space whilst adding accommodation at the first floor facing towards Acton Green Common.
Introducing a distinctive first-floor roof form that references the neighbouring gabled roof lines along South Parade, tying the pavilion into its surrounding context.
Acton Green Project Public Consultation Feedback form
Feedback & Next Steps
We will continue to have discussions with planning and conservation officers, which have so far been very positive.
We aim to submit a planning application to the London Borough of Ealing shortly, and we are keen to ensure that our application takes into account the views of everyone in the local area.
We therefore welcome your comments at this stage. We would be grateful if you could take a few minutes to complete a feedback form today.
It is our intention to keep both local residents, stakeholders and community groups fully consulted throughout the planning process. If you have any questions or if you would like to tell us about any other issues affecting the local area, please contact us in one of the following ways: