A disused church in St George’s will soon be home to a new congregation.

Gillian Outerbridge, parish administrator at St Peter’s West, said that building on Wellington Slip Road will now be used by the New Testament Church of God.

Ms Outerbridge said: “We are delighted that another church will be using the building. The church vestry made the decision to rent out St Peter’s West instead of selling at this point.”

The East End church was forced to close last summer due to a shortage of parishioners.

The Anglican church was attended by people who lived in the Wellington area but many of the older parishioners have died or become too ill to attend Sunday worship.

The Reverend David Raths conducted the last service in June. There were worries that a stained-glass window in the church depicting St Peter, crafted by local artist Vivienne Gardner, could be lost.

But Ms Outerbridge said the new tenant meant the safety of the window was assured. She added that a search had started to relocate other items from the church.

Ms Outerbridge explained: “The new tenants have plans for reconfiguring the interior layout, so have asked us to remove the pews. We hope to find homes for them soon.”

She said the nine-foot-long pews would make “lovely bookshelves” or plant stands.

The fourteen pews will be sold for $100 each.

Anyone interested should contact the church office at 297-2459.