Welcome!

Welcome to Central Methodist Church located in Chesterfield's town centre. Central is one of Britain's larger Methodist Churches, with acts of worship and other activities drawing people from across the Chesterfield area and beyond.

Ministers

The minister at Central is Revd Mark Carrick

Central's Life and Mission

We believe that Jesus invites all to belong to the Kingdom of God, and seek to provide a welcome to all, irrespective of their background or particular understanding of the Christian Faith.

Emphasis is placed on preaching in both word and action. The Sunday morning service is the focal point of Central's life as a Christian family and is designed to provide thoughtful and varied worship, with provision for children and young people.

Hybrid Church

We meet at Central for worship and fellowship every Sunday morning at 10:30am. However, during the pandemic, developing a hybrid form of church that reaches all our people became very important to us.

So, we are delighted to welcome you to a church that meets both online and in person, whilst offering written material to those unable to attend in either format.

• Sunday morning services are live-streamed on our YouTube channel.
• We meet together on Zoom for Circuit-wide Sunday evening worship at 6.00 pm.
• Written service material is distributed by post to those unable to worship in person or participate online.
• Daily Devotions – are available on YouTube and through our social media platforms.

Please visit our Service Search page for details of forthcoming services. You can also find all the links for our live-streamed and Zoom services on our Worship Online.

Living Church

Being located in the town centre, outreach and service are important to the life of the church. Therefore, Central is much more than just a Sunday Church, with a wide range of activities spread over the whole of the week.

Cornerstone
During the week, 'Cornerstone', the church's Christian coffee bar and bookshop, provides a warm welcome to visitors. We are open each Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday & Saturday, from 10am – 3pm.

Fellowship Groups

• Our weekly Prayer Group meet together every Monday evening, from 7:30pm.
• 'Celtic Morning Prayer' offers a half hour time of prayer and quiet every Wednesday morning at 9:30am.
• Our Bible Study groups meet on Wednesday mornings at 10:30am (weekly), Tuesday and Wednesday evenings at 7:30pm (fortnightly), providing an opportunity to keep in touch.
• We also have a range of Fellowship Groups that meet in local homes or at church. Please see a Steward if you are interested in joining a group!
• Our Sisterhood meet every Monday afternoon at 2pm.
• 'Women on Wednesday', meet on the second Wednesday of each month from 2pm.
• Our Friday Lunchtime Services meet every week, in the sanctuary from 12:15pm.

Children and Young People

There are also regular activities for Children and Young People, as well as opportunities for Christian Development; for building Fellowship, and for supporting Community facing projects.

• Our Junior Church, the J-Gang, meet every Sunday from 10:30am in the Church Hall.
• We hold an All-Age Service every third Sunday in the month, where the Church Family can worship together from 10:30am.
• Our young people have their own Youth Fellowship on alternative Sunday evenings from 6pm.
• Our Uniformed groups meet each week on our premises:
• Guides (11-13yrs) meet on a Tuesday evening, 6:30-8:30pm.
• Rangers (14yrs +) meet on alternate Tuesday evenings, 7-9pm.
• Rainbows (5-7yrs) meet on a Wednesday evening, 5:30-6:30pm.
• Brownies (7-10yrs) meet on a Wednesday evening, 6:30-8pm.
• Our Toddler Group runs on Thursdays during terms time between 10.00 am and 11.30 am.
• We run Messy Church during the school holidays (details on our Facebook page )

Social groups

• Centerpoint operates a weekly lunch club in the church hall every Tuesday.
• Our Snooker Club provides opportunities for people to meet in a Covid-19 safe environment.
• Our short mat bowling meets each Monday evening in the church hall.
• Our walking group, Boots & Routes, meet every month for a gentle ramble.
• Our Ukraine Drop-in Centre is available to all on a Saturday morning.
• Our Memory Cafe meets on the first Wednesday in each month from 2-4pm in Cornerstone to help those living with dementia.
• Our Warm Space runs each Friday throughout the winter, from 3pm.

Community groups

• The church supports, and is involved with, town centre charities e.g. Freedom Project, Foodbank, Child Contact Centre, Roofstops, and Pathways.

Wider World

• Central has an Eco-Group and supports Fair-Trade.
• The church also provides financial support to appropriate charitable causes through its 'Caring for Others' programme.

Keeping in touch

• Information on all activities is distributed by the Church Secretary via e-mail, or by post, every Wednesday.
• The Pastoral Visitors team maintains regular contact with members of the congregation.
• If you would like information to be sent to you or require contact for prayer or personal discussion, please use our contact form.

More information on what's happening at Central is available on the ' Latest News ' page and on our Facebook page.

Central's Building – a home for mission

Methodists have been worshipping on the Saltergate site since 1795. The present building dates from 1870 and is Grade II Listed, with the largest 'coffered ceiling' in the country.

A major redevelopment in the 1980s incorporated the most elegant of the historical features and provides an impressive space for worship. Nominal capacity in the sanctuary following redevelopment was 450. The redevelopment programme included a large hall, kitchen, and several meeting rooms. By then, the Church had recognised the importance of reaching into the community, and a coffee bar and Christian bookshop ('Cornerstone') were incorporated.

Over thirty years later, a significant improvement programme has just been completed, including provision of a new lift to allow full disabled access to the Sanctuary, installation of new sound and video equipment, refurbishment of Cornerstone and development of a new meeting room.