Christmas star church set for local listed status

A former Baptist church that has featured a distinctive Christmas star is set to be locally listed.

The Hearsall Baptist Church, on Queensland Avenue in Coventry, first opened as a Sunday School in 1928 and became a church in 1938.

The building, which traditionally has a popular "Star of Hope" illuminated on its tower for Christmas, was nominated for locally-listed status last year.

Coventry City Council is due to discuss the nomination at a meeting on Thursday, and a report submitted to the local authority has recommended that it endorses the listing.

The listing applies to the Baptist church's original building, also known as Hearsall Church Hall, and not the modern-day church building on the same site.

If a building has locally-listed status, its heritage must be considered in any proposed redevelopment, although the move does not afford full statutory protection.

The church was nominated for local listing after a petition calling for the move attracted over 1000 signatures.

Council officers said the Hall's "artistic and architectural value" meant the nomination should get the green light.

They added that the building also contributed to a sense of "local identity".

Many respondents to the public consultation focused on their attachment to the Star of Hope, rather than the Hall itself, the report said.

The local listing would only cover the building as the star is "a moveable fixture", but the council had been made aware of a commitment from the church's new owners to ensure the star continues to be a local monument, the report said.

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