About Us

Christ Church acts as a multi-purpose community hub, providing support for the area, with the  church hall used by a range of local groups. We are a small, but enthusiastic, mixed-age congregation who welcome the Shieldfield community,  students  and visitors. Our Sunday service follows a traditional form of worship with hymns and followed by fellowship.

Christ Church  was consecrated in 1861 and is Grade II* listed as a fine example of the Victorian Gothic architecture.  A brief description in A Guide to the Anglican Churches in Newcastle states: ‘This is one of the very best examples of Victorian Gothic buildings, far surpassing many more famous places. It has been sensitively reordered to facilitate the modern catholic liturgical reforms but retain a sense of the numinous for which the passerby seems grateful’.  While the exterior stonework, having never  been cleaned, may give it a forbidding appearance,  the interior surprises and delights the visitor with its blend of space and light.  The church has fine carvings, World War I memorials, stained and leaded glass windows and reredos by Charles Edgar Buckeridge, the  highly esteemed Victorian religious painter

In 2017 the church hall was refurbished, with modern kitchen and toilet facilities and  is available for use by local groups and for hire.  In 2018 the church was rewired with LED lighting and a new heating system was installed in 2019. In 2021 the re-plastering and redecoration of parts of the church was undertaken with window repairs carried out in 2023.

The church hall is regularly used by a range of local groups, including  circus skills, the Bangshees drumming group and by Newcastle Gamers.

The church is usually open at 9am Monday to Thursday, in addition to our usual service times, and for coffee mornings, fayres and other community events. It is also used by the adjoining church primary school.  We work with local community groups, arranging Heritage Open Days and other cultural events throughout the year.

We are  exploring  means of extending our community outreach work  to allow the church to be a living place of worship with a sustainable future, used and enjoyed by its local community, welcoming visitors and celebrating its unique heritage.  As part of this work we are looking to create a community room and disabled wc in the church.