Wimborne St Giles is part of the Quintet Group of Parishes, which also includes Cranborne, Boveridge, Edmondsham and Woodlands.
The Rector of the Quintet Group is The Reverend Robert Simpson. You can contact him by telephone: 01725 517232 or email:quintetrector3@gmail.com
The Quintet Group unites five communities as a single local church, at the same time having respect to particular Christian traditions within the individual parishes. What this means in practice is that a varied range of worship is offered, including old and new styles of liturgy, the formal and less-formal, the simple and the ceremonial.
Services
Church Building
St. Giles’ Church, which has Grade 1 Listed status, is situated in the middle of the village of Wimborne St Giles, facing the village green and school and adjoining a row of early 17C Almshouses. The church has a fine organ and a resident organist. It is open every day to visitors.
The present building was constructed in 1732 on the site of the earlier mediaeval church and was designed by the Bastard Brothers, architects of Blandford. Records indicate a church here in 1291. The Bastard Brothers’ Church was in Early Georgian style, well constructed in greensand and flint.
The church was somewhat remodelled by the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury in 1852 and further changed in the fashion of the Gothic Revival by Harriet, wife of the 8th Earl, who in 1887 used GF Bodley as her architect. This work included adding false Early English arches and closing off the East window.
Between 1908 and 1910, following a catastrophic fire, the building was enlarged and remodelled by the great Gothic Revival Architect Sir John Ninian Comper. The Church is now regarded as one of Comper’s seminal projects and the test bed for his “Harmony by Inclusion” concept. Given a free hand by the 9th Earl of Shaftesbury Comper attended to every aspect of detail, including the incorporation of the four fine windows in the North wall which were recycled from the chapel at Christ’s College Oxford.
Bells at St Giles
The tower was endowed with six bells before the fire of 1908 but these were lost when the bell frame gave way. Six new bells were cast as part of the restoration and two more were added in 1926 to give a peal of eight, now in a steel frame. There is an active team between St Giles and Cranborne towers and both are frequently visited by touring teams.
Works and Projects
We run a continuous programme of maintenance and repair to this Grade 1 Listed building and its contents. At the moment significant items in hand are:
Investigating providing a toilet
Installing a PA system and hearing loop
Undertaking a conservation survey of certain Shaftesbury monuments
Conservation of ancient Yews in churchyard
If you would like to know more about this work (or contribute towards its cost) please contact the Churchwarden – Martyn Cubitt: mcubitt.wsg8@btinternet.com
