THE reverend at Bournemouth’s newest church has issued an open invitation to people to give them a try.

The Rev Dr Tim Matthews, who will host the first service at the newly re-opened St Swithun’s Church tomorrow, said they were keen to appeal to people who might have had a bad experience with Christianity in the past.

He said they wanted to be renowned for their warm welcome, with every person who walks through the door being offered a drink or something to eat within three minutes.

St Swithun’s Church in Bournemouth’s East Cliff was formally launched on Thursday evening, with the Bishop of Winchester in attendance.

The church is a partnership between the Bishop of Winchester, Holy Trinity Brompton and Alpha and offers non-traditional worship, with speakers and television screens set up in the middle of the main auditorium.

Tim, a former academic and accountant in the City of London, has moved to Bournemouth with his wife Debi and three children to re-open St Swithun’s.

He said: “I grew up in churches that were stone, cold and hard and I rather thought God was the same, that’s what my experience of the church was.

“Then I discovered He wasn’t at all like that and we don’t want the church to be like that either. I want it to be a place where everybody feels loved, everyone feels welcomed, everyone feels warm.”

An Alpha course will start on October 8 and they will soon start services and open evenings for the local student community Tim said he looked forward to working with other local churches to increase the number of Christians in the area. Data from the last census reveals that Bournemouth is below average in terms of people attending church.

“I see a lot of hope for the future of the church. I’m really confident that next time the census comes round we will have turned the tide a bit,” he said.