Come and See Us

St Swithun’s Church is located in the centre of Worcester and has been in the care of Churches Conservation Trust (CCT), the national charity caring for historic churches since 1977. In 2022, this stunning Georgian church was transformed into a unique arts and music space, named Sound & Art at St Swithun’s (SASS). This major regeneration project is supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. 

Watch these two videos to discover the many activities and events we have delivered since launching in 2022!

Celebrating our success

In 2019 Churches Conservation Trust secured 2.8 million pounds in grant funding to begin important restoration work to save the building, eventually re-launching the space as a vibrant events space for community gatherings, heritage learning and the arts.

Opening its doors in 2022, the project began breathing life back into the walls, inviting people to gather, discover and play. This project has given the people of Worcester a reason to remember and provided a destination for the city’s farthest-flung diaspora to return to. 

The variety and quantity of activities delivered in the space has provided lots of opportunities for local people to come together in community once again as well as supporting local emerging artists, musicians and creatives. The entertainment and events on offer have created a cultural lightning rod, bringing visitors from the city and further afield to discover live music; from contemporary genres through to traditional styles, as well as cutting edge arts, including exhibitions, installations and workshops.

Sound & Art at St Swithun’s has re-integrated St Swithun’s back into the fabric of Worcester, through engaging with local initiatives, partnering with businesses in the city, providing engagement and volunteering opportunities and delivering high-quality events.

As the project reaches its initial planned end point, and the building, now carefully restored, may well stand for another 300 years; we are looking back on everything we have achieved and celebrating our successes. Having secured a six-month extension until August 2026, SASS continues to provide for its established audience, building on the positive discoveries made and working to create a vision for a sustainable future.

Our opening times vary due to various activities and events at the church. We aim to be open Tuesday to Friday 10am - 4pm each week, though sometimes this isn't possible as we are a very small team of staff. To avoid disappointment, please contact hello@worcesterstswithuns.org to check if we are open when you plan to visit.

Keep an eye on our What's On page for upcoming events and family activities.

St Swithun’s Church is a just 5-minute walk from Worcester Foregate Train Station and The Guildhall in Worcester.

https://goo.gl/maps/LZaboH76XtA5Tcsa7

St Swithun’s is for everyone - for people of all ages, from all backgrounds, and of all faiths and none. We want to be as accessible as possible for people with disabilities, including those with hidden disabilities and chronic conditions. We are striving to improve our accessibility, but we recognise that we have some way to go, so please consider this access information as a work in progress.

There are two entrances to St Swithun’s; via Church Street and via The Shambles. Only the entrance via Church Street has level access; access at this entrance is through a set of iron gates and an original church door, so the maximum width is approximately 90cm.

We do not have any parking of our own. The nearest place to drop passengers off is St Swithin’s Street. The nearest car park is Cornmarket, which is about 5 minutes walk away and there are other nearby parking options such as Crowngate Car Park and St Martin's Gate Car Park.

We have two toilets. Both toilets are gender neutral, and both are self contained, with the sink inside the cubicle, as well as a bin. Neither toilet has an air dryer, both have paper towels, so there is no additional noise from air dryers. One of the cubicles is an accessible toilet, with additional room, hand rails, red alarm cord. There is no mirror in the accessible cubicle. The accessible cubicle also contains the baby change unit. The nearest Changing Place toilet is at Cornmarket, about 5 minutes away.

Visitors of all ages are welcome in the church! Level access for pushchairs is via the entrance on Church Street. Within the church children are welcome to make as much noise as they like! There are usually activities set up for children to join in with, particularly during school holidays. There is a baby change unit within the accessible toilet.

The interior of the church is as it was when it was built in the 18th century, with box pews, triple decker pulpit, and stained glass. The main body of the church is level access; the floor is made up of flagstones, but they were recently relaid to be as level as possible. There is one single step to access the box pews (19cm high). There are 13 steps to access the top of the pulpit, around a narrow spiral staircase.

The church is usually lit with LED lighting which can be set to different colours; it is often purple or blue. We can turn the coloured lights off or just have the natural light, if that is helpful for you, just ask. There are no window coverings, so if the LED lights are turned off then light levels are dependent on how sunny the weather is.
We usually have music playing during the day. We can turn this off for you, if that’s helpful. We may also have additional noise from streaming events on the big screen, e.g. Glastonbury or the Olympics, which we would not be able to turn off; these events are always advertised on our social media accounts so you can check in advance of your visit. Because we are right in the middle of the city centre, you may also hear noises from outside, such as delivery vans, buskers, large bins being emptied, etc.
The building is usually fairly cool, even on a hot day. In winter, it can get very cold, particularly later in the afternoon or evening.

St Swithun’s is around 300 years old and many people have been part of the community during that time. Many of them are buried within the church, and memorials on the wall and floor record these. Within the pews are many plaques to children who are buried within the church; these may be upsetting for visitors.

We are trying to improve our accessibility. If there is any information missing from this page that you would find helpful, please contact us. If you have any feedback on your visit, we would also welcome that. You can contact us via the details below.

If you have any accessibility related questions or concerns about your visit to St Swithun’s, please contact our team: hello@worcesterstswithuns.org