“The Link”

On Wednesday, 6th July 2005 — the long awaited (and delayed!) glass roof was placed onto the Link. The Link is accessed from the Church by an interior platform with wheelchair lift is available for those that need it.

On Sunday 17th July 2005 we welcomed many of those whose contributions to the Link project have been invaluable and we were also joined by the Bishop of Woolwich for the official opening and blessing of the Link at our Dedication Festival and Parish Lunch .

The aim of the Link project is to bring closer together St. Luke's Church and its Hall by providing covered walkway (The Link) between the two buildings. It has, for the past decade, at times been a fleeting dream but, it is now a reality.

The project took three years to complete after the Heritage Lottery Fund agreed to support our plans by awarding us a 60% grant towards the project.

The completion of the Link project has:

• Given us a new, combined entrance for the church and hall buildings.
• Improved the access in the passageway between the buildings, offering a more attractive entrance to the facilities.
• Provided more secure access, including CCTV, for all users (especially the pre-school and CRUSE.)
• Provided a discrete quiet and/or play area between the buildings.
• Ensured that there is full internal access between the church and hall, including a wheelchair lift.

To complete the project took a lot of hard work by many people - the fund-raising and Link groups who kept the dream alive by steadily building up our finances, the many other individuals who have given both their time and skills help us complete the work, the PCC for its commitment to seeing this project through and also our architect Ursula Bowyer.

There have been ups and downs - the success of the grant application, the long wait for Faculty Church Consent from the Diocese and Planning Permission from Greenwich Council, the costs gradually increasing as the months passed and then the fear of losing funding as the grant deadline approached. But, thanks to the tremendous efforts of Chris Presley in guiding us through the final planning phase and then leading our negotiations with the Quantity Surveyor, costs were at last negotiated downwards!

Now that the Link is complete we look forward to reaping the benefits of our labours and the labours of all those who have helped us reach our goal.