Landmark Kidderminster church to go under the hammer

The Church Street lot is a Grade II listed former Church and a detached former meeting hall, with car parking for around 25 cars.

The property, which has a guide price of £250,000, is among 186 lots listed for sale in Bond Wolfe’s next auction which is due to start at 9am on Thursday, March 30.

A Nonconformist church for nearly 250 years and the home of Kidderminster’s Unitarian congregation, the New Meeting Hall closed in 2020 in the wake of Covid and falling attendance figures.

Ian Tudor, joint managing director auctions at Bond Wolfe, said: “The property consists of a historic former church together with a detached former meeting hall and car parking for approximately 25 cars, standing on a site of about 0.58 acres.

“It has been an important landmark building within the heart of Kidderminster town centre for many years. 

“The accommodation includes the attractive main church building which retains its features including an array of stained glass windows and large oak entrance doors.”

Inside the church (Image: Bond Wolfe)

The New Meeting House dates from 1782, although a major rebuild took place in 1883 including the present Gothic frontage. The meeting hall next door dates from 1907.

The church’s origins stretch back to the English Civil War and the time of famous Puritan cleric Richard Baxter, who lived and worked in Kidderminster between 1641 and 1661. His statue stands nearby in front of the nearby St Mary’s Church and his Jacobean pulpit was a feature of the New Meeting House chapel.

The New Meeting House was founded following a split between Kidderminster’s nonconformist congregation, opening in November 1782.