St Leonard’s church is not one of our ten churches that makes up the Upper Wylye Valley Team, but it was Sutton Veny’s parish church until it was replaced by St John the Baptist in 1868. In recent years St Leonard’s has been taken under the wing of the Churches Conservation Trust who ensure its upkeep and we are very blessed that each year we are able to hold a service here through the kind permission of the Churches Conservation Trust and the Diocese of Salisbury.

This year saw us hold Evening Prayer on Sunday 4^th August 2019, where many from the village and further afield came along to join us as we worshipped God in the ancient ruins of this Church. The weather was extremely kind to us, and although many turned up with umbrellas, there was no need as the sun shone, warming all who were sat in the remains of the nave. Once again we were joined by our wonderful local musicians who added to the historic atmosphere leading the hymns with a folk band made up of a violin, traditional accordion and the rarely seen and heard wind instrument called the serpent. They really did add to the whole service for which we give our heartfelt thanks.

We were blessed to have the Bishop of Ramsbury, The Right Reverend Dr Andrew Rumsey, join us to lead the service, giving a humorous yet thought provoking sermon enjoyed by all and much discussed afterwards over a glass of Pimm’s and very tasty nibbles.

A huge thank you to Brian Long and Annabel Elliott, who made the arrangements for the service, to Judy Cooper and Richard Jackman, who orchestrated the food and drink respectively, and to all who helped to ensure that this service ran smoothly and was enjoyed by everyone. Without such wonderful and hardworking volunteers, this service and much that we do as parish churches in our villages would not happen.

After such a wonderful, Holy Spirit filled evening we are looking forward to next years’ service and would love to welcome you to join us.

(Click an image below for a larger view)