Kilmington School has set up a new temporary home in Kilmington Baptist Church while building work takes place.

Pipits preschool and reception classes are currently holding lessons throughout the day at the church.

Kilmington School was looking for a place to hold classes, while their school buildings receive a renovation. As a small school there is nowhere else for the pupils to go on the school site, as the work is carried out.

Pastor Mike says that a lot of events take place in the church so 'flexibility' is required from ministry teams, and also outside hirers.

Each week, the main gathering space is cleared of chairs, so that other building users that would be using the rear hall, can use this space instead. 'It’s been great to see the church step up.'

The old Baptist church was destroyed by a fire. Which is when they moved to where they are now, the Beacon, which opened in 2015, the community spirit they received when the fire struck amazed them, and they see this now as an opportunity to give back to the community.

Mike added: "Things are a little noisier at times, but we’re used to that here! It’s a real blessing to see the children and staff make themselves at home. As we iron out the creases to make their stay even better, we are talking with the school to see how we might serve both them, the children, and the parents while they are with us.

The building work at the school is currently delayed, so the church envisage the school kids will return to the church for teaching, after the summer school holidays in September.

Pastor Mike said: "We’re always keen to help and bless them in any way we can, and have a great relationship with the staff and students. We quickly agreed that we would love to help the school by opening our doors to them, and made the necessary arrangements to make it happen."

When we heard of the need for the school, we were really keen to help out. We love our village school, and if there was a way to offer hospitality and bless them, we wanted to do just that.

"Jesus’ model of hospitality and radical welcome is something we try to live out. We wanted to work with the school to offer a relaxing environment and some continuity for the children and staff at a challenging time."