Encounter Church formerly known as Selly Oak Elim Church and formerly St Wulstan's is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

in the Bournbrook district of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

, but which is now an Elim Pentecostal Church.

History

St Wulstan's Church, Bournbrook, was established as a mission church to

St Mary's Church, Selly Oak St. Mary's Church, Selly Oak is a Church of England parish church in Selly Oak, Birmingham, England. History The parish of St. Mary was from part of the parish of St. Laurence, Northfield in 1862. The church is set back from the main Bristol ...

, in 1893. Countess Beauchamp laid a foundation stone for a new church building in Exeter Road on St Wilstan's Day, 19 January 1906, the inscription declaring that it was being built "To the Glory of God and for the benefit of the People of Bournbrook". The church was built of red and blue brick by the architects

J. E. K. Cutts John Edward Knight Cutts (1847–1938) FRIBA was a prolific church architect in England. Background Cutts was born on 20 March 1847 in Lenton, Nottingham, the son of Edward Lewes Cutts and Mary Ann Elizabeth Knight. Cutts attended the Felsted S ...

(1847-1938) and John Priston Cutts (1854-1935), was designed to accommodate 713 worshippers, cost approximately £5,600 () to construct was consecrated by the Bishop of Birmingham on 6 October 1906. In 1983 the parish of St Wulstan's, Bournbrook, merged with

St Stephen's Church, Selly Park St Stephen's Church, Selly Park is a Grade II listed parish church in the Church of England in Birmingham. History It was built between 1870 and 1871 by Martin & Chamberlain architects in the English Decorated Gothic style, as a daughter church ...

, and the Exeter Road building was swapped with Selly Oak Elim Church's building in Alton Road, Bournbrook. The local Elim congregation had been founded in 1936, and had initially met in people's homes before holding meetings at the Selly Oak Institute; hence why it is called the 'Selly Oak' Elim Church even though it is located in Bournbrook. In 2018 Selly Oak Elim Church changed its name to Encounter Church.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Selly Oak Elim Pentecostal Church Churches in Birmingham, West Midlands Former Church of England church buildings Churches completed in 1906