S. Francis of Assisi Church, Charminster, Bournemouth

Steadfast in Tradition and Faith

S. Francis of Assisi Church is grounded in the catholic faith and seeks to continue to serve the parish of Charminster Bournemouth, by proclaiming the Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ through the traditional creeds, authority and teaching of the Church and sacraments.

We are an inclusive church and give a warm welcome to all, irrespective of age, denomination, race, nationality, disability, gender, or background.

Welcome to the website for the St. Francis of Assisi Church in Bournemouth, Dorset.

Firmly established in the Catholic tradition of the Church of England, Saint Francis Church has been witnessing to the Christian faith and serving the people of Charminster since 1930.

The parish is located on the northern outskirts of Bournemouth, Dorset, and serves a suburban area containing approximately 7,000 people and 5 schools, first, junior, secondary and grammar.

We are a Forward in Faith Church in the Anglican Diocese of Winchester.

Episcopal oversight is given by the Bishop of Richborough.

Designed by the architect, J. Harold Gibbons, in the Italian Romanesque style the church stands prominently on a hill, which accentuates the campanile (bell tower). It is plainly rendered inside and out, and has several architectural features associated with S. Francis: including carvings of squirrels and birds. John Betjeman referred to S. Francis in his 1949 essay on Bournemouth and in his illustrated book English Churches (1964); he says that S. Francis "looks like the church of some Anglo-Catholic mission in South Africa".

The interior is dominated by a large painted crucifix, and a beautiful carved ciborium or canopy over the high altar. The baptistry contains a Norman font recovered by the architect from a Welsh farmyard. The sanctuary lamps are cleverly adapted from a silver tea service. For more description and history, click history in the menu.

Worship at S. Francis is in accordance with the request of the founder and benefactor, Helen Reckitt (of Reckitt and Colman), that the full catholic faith should be taught. This has been faithfully respected over the years. Services are modern and lively, with full lay participation. The main service on Sunday is the 10 a.m. Parish Mass.

Owing to the ordination of women to the priesthood, S. Francis Church passed Resolutions A, B and C and remains the only church to have done so in Bournemouth and in the west of the diocese of Winchester. Episcopal oversight is given by the Bishop of Richborough.

Though belonging to a definite Catholic Christian tradition, we seek to be an inclusive church and offer a warm and sincere welcome to all our visitors and new members. Children are especially welcome and a Junior Church runs alongside our Sunday mass.