The Ipswich Historic Churches Trust’s aims are ‘the preservation and maintenance for the public benefit of redundant churches of all denominations in the Borough of Ipswich which are of historic or architectural value’.
The medieval churches of St Lawrence, St Peter and St Clement remain in the trust’s care, and we work to keep them in good repair, find suitable new uses and tell people about their history.
St Nicholas has returned to the care of the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich. St Stephen’s church has returned to the care of Ipswich Borough Council and is operated as a venue know as The Church.
St Lawrence’s has the oldest ring of 5 bells in a christian church. It is likely Cardinal Wolsey heard them as a young man. It is now a welcoming cafe, run as a social enterprise.
St Stephen’s is experiencing a new lease of life as a venue known as The Church, operated by Brighten the Corners a not for profit organisation that promotes independent and emerging artists.
St Clement’s was once one of the town’s mariners’ churches. It has undergone extensive renovations in order to make it a suitable venue for hire and is now regularly used for arts and community events.
St Peter’s is another mariners’ church, it was part of the Augustinian Priory of St Peter and St Paul and later Cardinal Wolsey’s chosen chapel for his college.
It is home to Ipswich Hospital Band who also host a variety of arts and music events.
St Nicholas’ came to the Trust in 1984, but was returned to the diocese in 2001 to become the St. Nicholas Centre and Sanctuary Restaurant. The church and adjacent offices are currently up for sale.
Church Locations
The five churches belonging to the Historic Churches Trust are in Ipswich town centre, please click here to locate them
Or make a donation
We welcome one-off donations of any size, please contact us here