St Paul’s Church was opened in 1812 as the Worthing Chapel of Ease. It was built so that the residents & visitors to the newly created town of Worthing would not need to travel to the parish church of St Mary in Broadwater.
The Chapel of Ease gave its name to Worthing town centre’s principal north-south route, Chapel Road. The Reverend William Davison was appointed the chapel’s first chaplain. He went on to set up schools for boys, girls & infants in the town with money raised from the congregation. The girls’ school he established was the original Davison High School.
Designed by John Rebecca and built by Ambrose Cartwright, who also built nearby Ambrose Place, the building has a Doric portico with four columns facing Chapel Road, with a bell cupola behind it. The building’s yellow bricks are made from the blue clay taken from Worthing Common (also known as the Saltgrass), the green space, which, in the 19th century existed south of the current beach & is now underwater. The building is partly stuccoed.
The interior of the church was finished by a Worthing man, Edward Hide. Queen Charlotte, wife of George III, presented the church with the royal coat of arms in thanks to the people of Worthing for showing such generosity & kindness to her two daughters, Princesses Amelia & Charlotte when they stayed in the town.
The building was closed in 1996 due to an unsafe roof. Now after a 2 Million pound restoration of this Grade II* listed building, St Pauls provides a spectacular award winning venue, cafe & bar in the heart of Worthing - offering you a fantastic backdrop for concerts, weddings, exhibitions, parties, theatre, comedy & more.
