London’s oldest Baptist church closed in late 2014. The closure of the church once served by luminaries such as William Kiffin, Abraham Booth and Ernest Kevan deeply saddened many people. The closure of the historic church, however, was more than a blow to ‘denominational’ hubris. It was a dent to efforts to evangelise one of London’s most diverse and rapidly growing towns.
After a period of decline left Kings Road Baptist Church in North East London with few members and no officers, services in the chapel were suspended. In 2012 Grace Baptist Partnership – in fellowship with Home Mission – developed a plan to replant the church. With the support of Hayes Lane Baptist Church in Bromley, Bernard Roberts and his wife Michelle were set aside to lead the work. Now more than three years into the project, they are seeing fruit for their labour and the small, increasingly-healthy church is growing.
