St. Mary’s church fabric is generally in very good condition. In 2004 a successful Clerestory Stonework Appeal raised some £120,000 (including grant aid) and enabled essential repair work to be completed on the Clerestory windows and upper-level stonework. Work on lower-level stonework may be desirable in the medium term.
St. Mary’s Parish Office holds an office for the clergy, another for the Parish Administrator and a room set aside for the photocopier and records / registers.
On St. Mary’s Row, several buildings adjacent to the church belong to the PCC. These provide very useful rental income for the church.
Above the Parish Office are the “Crows Nest” and “Robins Nest”. The former is used for church groups and the latter is held on licence by Abbey Candles, a small firm supplying church requisites.
Behind the main church building is the Piggott Room, used for church groups, with stairs leading down to Rose Cottage which is used by children’s and youth groups.
The Vicarage at 18 Oxford Road is set up a long driveway beside Moseley C of E School. It was constructed in the late 1960s and has five bedrooms (four on the first floor and one in the roof space). There is a garage attached, made accessible via the utility room when the kitchen was refitted a few years ago. The Priest-in-Charge has a study on the ground floor and there is also a downstairs cloakroom and toilet for visitors. The building has UPVC windows throughout and an alarm system is installed. There is a reasonably sized enclosed landscaped rear garden, and a front garden area between the house and the top of the drive where there is parking space for six to eight vehicles.
The Diocese provides a house in the parish for the curate.
The fabric of St. Anne’s church is in excellent condition having been well maintained over the last thirty years. During this time a sum in excess of £150,000 has been spent on quinquennial repairs, which are up-to-date.
Within the well-laid-out church grounds is the parish hall, built in 1924 and refurbished in 2000, which provides spacious accommodation for various church activities; it comprises a large main hall with annexe, council room, toilets with disabled facilities and a well-equipped kitchen. In addition to church activities, there are several regular and a few occasional outside lettings, e.g. ballet, badminton, karate, maths and English classes, and a folk dancing group.
St. Anne’s vicarage stands next to the church; it was built in 1967 and is in an excellent state of repair. The Assistant Priest/Youth worker currently occupies this.
This operated for some 30 years in the former premises of the C of E School, Victorian buildings in School Road. Following many years of financial stringency and deteriorating buildings, it was sadly recognised in 2003 that the Centre in its existing form could not continue to operate. It finally closed its doors in August 2004. This has been the cause of some controversy in the local community and much effort has been expended by the church on reassurance and communication. More still needs to be done in this area.
The building has been demolished and the site is due to be sold, releasing funds to enable imaginative development on the church site, providing both parochial and community facilities. A co-ordinating group is overseeing the process of re-development in conjunction with a chosen architect. As part of the deliberations, a Community Audit has been commissioned, the results of which were available from September 2005. This has included consultations with the congregation and the identification of skills which can be harnessed for the good of the church and the community. Planning is proceeding well, but the opinions of the new Priest-in-Charge will be welcomed.