The beginnings of Newark Evangelical Church go back to around 1978. A gathering began in the home of current church members Philip and Pauline Pooley, who then lived on Winchelsea Avenue, Newark. It attracted a wide range of Christians from the town, with up to 50 people attending. Some had to sit on the stairs to fit in. A pastor from Hinckley, Leicestershire, Eric Alldritt, led Bible studies for the group (he would later become the church’s pastor). These house meetings were initially on a Thursday evening, but soon a Sunday morning meeting was added.
In 1979 the church called its first pastor, Michael Holland, who was an assistant pastor at a church in London. His induction service was on 13th October, 1979, at Highfields School, Newark. About 300 attended. This event marked the official beginning of the church and when the title of Newark Evangelical Church was first used. The church’s first meeting place was St. Augustine’s mission hall, Newton Street, Newark (which has since been knocked down and replaced by flats). They then moved to the newly refurbished Bede House Chapel, on Bede House Lane, Newark. From about 1982 they started using Millgate Community Centre, which was a bigger venue holding up to 50 people.
Michael’s pastorate at NEC ended in 1986 when he was called to Lincoln Christian Fellowship. The church was without a pastor until the induction of Eric Alldritt on 9th January, 1987. By 1994 the church had outgrown Millgate Community Centre. The old Victorian fire station opposite the community centre was for sale. The total cost of the building, including refurbishment, came to about £100,000. Much work was required to convert the building for use as a church. After the fire service moved out of the building in 1969 it became a storage depot for police patrol cars. By the time the church bought the building, it was owned by Newark and Sherwood College. The downstairs hall was used for workshops. What is now the creche room was used as a trainee hairdressing salon. The rooms upstairs were used for adult education classes. The pit once used for inspecting fire engines was tiled and became a baptistry.
The church was without a pastor from April 1999 to September 2001 when Carl Meachem joined the church. In recent years the church has grown and an assistant pastor, Andrew Miller, was called to serve alongside Carl and joined the church in February 2015. In 2017 Carl and Andrew’s roles changed, with Andrew recognised by the church as senior pastor and Carl serving as part-time associate pastor. With a bursting hall on Sunday mornings and growing membership, the church began searching for a new building. Various options were considered but after a couple of years, the church decided to start a new congregation in Fernwood in January 2018. Fernwood Community Church was led by Carl alongside a team of leaders sent from NEC. Carl was called into overseas mission work with People International in 2022, while remaining an elder in the church and helping to lead FCC. In 2023, FCC called its first full-time pastor, Klaas-Jan Gunnink, and is continuing the process towards becoming an independent church.
Newark Evangelical Church 