SALISBURY UNITING CHURCH: REVITALISATION PROJECT

RENOVATION AND ADDITION TO EXISTING CHURCH COMPLEX

The Salisbury Uniting brief was to renovate existing tired, ‘make-do’ facilities into a community outreach hub and to present the church as more open and welcoming to the broader community.  The brief included a redefined entry, simplified circulation, kitchen, café, admin areas and a community support/distribution centre.

It is a gift to have a community that thrives in spite of the existing buildings it occupies and then as architects, to find a way for the buildings to reciprocate this vibrancy.    

Huge existing footprint, tiny budget, big impact.  What were the highest value architectural moves that would fulfill the functional needs of service, distribution, and administration but will also translate dislocated and opaque structures into a message of welcome, permeability, and unity? Previous eras of extension to the original church had left a large, unwieldy, and sprawling collection of outdated halls and ancillary spaces.  Whilst well used by a large cross section of the community, these spaces were hard to navigate, disconnected from each other, from the core church community, and from the broader Salisbury Community. 

In parallel is the subtext of a Christian message in built form.  Church buildings have the potential to threaten and alienate or welcome and love.  As Christian congregations are shrinking, these building types struggle to maintain their relevance and identity which, was for a long time, at the heart of the community.  How can these building be transformed to deliver a genuine and gentle invitation – a message from a congregation who already choose live it through their service to the community?

“Salisbury Uniting Church had a vision to bring the Office Administration and Uniting in Care Salisbury Agency over to the Church Complex. KHAB Architects were chosen to design and develop a plan over 2 Stages…. As visitors enter the building they are welcomed and invited into the cafe area for coffee or tea. Many have been amazed at the transformation and commented on the large & inviting open spaces. It has already brightened the lives of many clients that come to the Agency in need of assistance. They are so grateful to be welcomed into a space that ‘opens doors’ to the community, the new glass windows and doors that replaced the high walls and darkened rooms now provides sunlight and views that invite you in.”

Cheryl Sachse, Salisbury Uniting Church Administration.