New conference centre for church

The new centre will cost about £750,000

Proposals for a new conference centre for the Church of England in Suffolk have been announced.

The Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich has put in an application for planning permission to Ipswich Borough Council for the new £750,000 building.

The modern glass-sided centre will link the church of St Nicholas, in Cromwell Square, Ipswich, with the nearby diocesan offices in Churchgates House.

The building will be used as a conference centre and serve as a reception for both buildings.

The centre will link the church to the Diocese office

The centre will provide a home for the Suffolk Ecumenical Resource Library and Revelations bookshop.

Nicholas Edgell, diocesan secretary, said the building was "cleverly designed to have as little contact with the fabric of the church as possible and to ensure that the ancient church is not unduly disturbed".

St Nicholas church dates from the 1300s and is a Grade II* listed building.