About St. Giles

St. Giles Church, Tattenhoe, stands in an expanding part of Milton Keynes.

The present church building dates from about 1540, although a church may have stood here since 1100. The building has been derelict several times, and for many years it stood amongst green fields, but now it is surrounded by the housing of Tattenhoe. The building is Grade 2* listed, and sits within the Tattenhoe Manor site, which is itself a Scheduled Monument, forming an oasis of calm in the modern world. For some years the church was only used in summer and at Christmas. In autumn 1999 the churchwardens invited Immanuel Church, a new congregation in the Watling Valley Ecumenical Partnership, to use the building for weekly worship. The two churches now work closely together to provide a focus for worship and Christianity in the area.

The interior of the church has recently been refurbished and redecorated, but retains the historical features which make it so special. This has included repair and repainting of the ceiling and walls and the repair, repainting and graining of the woodwork.

St. Giles has no utilities connected, lighting is by candles and heating by bottled gas - when visiting St. Giles you should dress appropriately for the weather conditions.. It is hoped that in the next year or two electricity will be installed to provide further heating and lighting, whilst preserving the character of the building.

Services (see the links on the right) are held every Sunday morning throughout the year, and a traditional evensong is held on alternate Sundays "from rogation to harvest" - i.e. throughout the summer. Special services include the Harvest Festival, which is followed by an auction of produce, and Christmas services including a traditional "Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols", family Christingle services and Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. 

St. Giles itself is an Anglican Church within the Watling Valley Parish, however the morning congregation,  Immanuel at St. Giles, is part of the Watling Valley Ecumenical Partnership, which includes Anglican, Baptist, Methodist and United Reformed denominations.