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Reverend prays fire-hit church will reopen in 2027

News imageSHAUN WHITMORE/BBC Reverend Jonathan Richardson is bald. He is wearing a black shirt with a Roman collar and glasses, and is smiling.SHAUN WHITMORE/BBC
Reverend Jonathan Richardson said he could not put an exact date on when the church would reopen

The reverend of a church that was gutted by fire a year ago is praying it will reopen in time for Christmas 2027.

St John's Baptist Church in Harleston, Norfolk, was engulfed in flames on 1 October and while fire crews managed to save a lot of the structure, there was significant internal damage.

Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service said the cause of the blaze, which started in the kitchen of the Grade II listed building, was ruled as accidental.

Reverend Jonathan Richardson said he could not give an exact reopening date, but prayed it would be possible to "actually do a carol service" from the church next year.

News imageQAYS NAJM/BBC Firefighters on a ladder just above the roof of a church, just behind its pointed gable end. A small amount of smoke is behind the tip of the gable end, which has a cross at its apex. Fire engines and passers by are in the street. There are red hoses across the road.QAYS NAJM/BBC
Six crews were called to the fire in October 2025

Richardson, who has been the curate in Harleston for the past four months, added: "I don't think we're putting a date on opening.

"The main contract is scheduled to be a year. If that is true, then it will be roughly two years from when the fire happened, but there will be some residual work to do. It's going to be a bit of a fluid end.

"My prayer would be that Christmas 2027 we might actually do a carol service here."

News imageSHAUN WHITMORE/BBC A drone photo shows that the top of St John's church is covered in white sheeting and the church itself is surrounded by scaffolding. SHAUN WHITMORE/BBC
The top of St John's church is covered in white sheeting that has been erected ahead of major construction work

The church is currently covered in scaffolding and has been chemically cleaned to help restore the limestone ahead of major construction work.

Repair costs have not been confirmed, but it is thought the stained glass windows alone will cost hundreds of thousands of pounds.

The work is being funded by insurance.

Richardson said there had been a "level of grief and trauma" among parishioners, but that the main reaction had been to "rally round and carry on".

News imageANNIE GREEN/BBC The church is covered in scaffolding ready for major work to begin. There is a metal fence around the site with various safety signs warning people to take care.ANNIE GREEN/BBC
The church is covered in scaffolding ready for major work to begin

St John the Baptist Church in Broad Street dates back to the 1870s.

It is one of seven churches that made up the collective Benefice of Redenhall with Scole across the Waveney Valley.

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