St Giles Church
This church was first built in the 12th century and is mentioned in the Doomsday Book, parts of church from this time are still present. Alterations were made in the 18th and 19th century but its charm with boxed pews and Norman carvings remain. A service is held on the 1st and 3rd Sunday of the month. It is one of 3 churches in the Henfield parish.
Getting to the Church and Parking – The gate on the A281 and church are kept locked and opened for services/events or by prior arrangement. (The footpath gate is left open). The gravel lane to the church is ½ mile long. Parking is by the side of the lane near the church. There is no allocated disabled parking bay, but people tend to drop off disabled people at the church and then go off to park. Mobility scooters can be parked outside or inside the church.
Pathway to the porch – From the lane there is a gravel path to the wide church gate which is hooked open when the church is in use. Then a 25 metre flat tarmac path to the church, then flagstones to the porch.
Entrance to the church – There are welcomers who are able to help disabled people arriving at the church. The outer lychgate double doors are both 64cm wide, with both being able to be opened if needed. The
porch is tiled with a thick (approx 5cm) coir mat leading to the inner door. The double inner doors are both 57cm wide, but both can be opened if needed. There is a small step at this point but the coir mat comes up to it making only a 2-3cm step. Wheelchairs and other disabled people regularly manage to get into the church.
Within the Church – There are 22 box pews with comfortable cushions with no step/ridge into them. The aisle is 205cm wide, so wheelchairs or mobility scooters can be parked here so people can sit with their friends/
family. There are 4 chancel steps which are 7” (18cm) high, but people would not need to go up these as Communion can be given wherever they are sitting. There is muted lighting throughout the church. There is no hearing loop, microphone or speaker system because it is a small church with good acoustics and no extra equipment has been found to be needed.
Toilet and Kitchen Area - there is a tarmac path near the front door to a relatively new purpose-built accessible toilet. It has a disabled toilet handle, an automatic light, 1 adjustable and 4 fixed handrails which allows for a lateral transfer and an alarm. The toilet is 5 feet (150cm) x 8 feet (250cm) and the toilet door is 31½” (80cm) wide.
