​Who's Who at Calne Baptist Church

Minister, Deacons & Officers (in alphabetical order)

Wayne Lawther (Minister/Chair of Trustees)

Wayne was appointed our minister in March 2024. Wayne lives in Chippenham with his wife, Marie-Innocence, and their three children. Before joining Calne Baptist Church, he was a missionary in West Africa, a youth & children’s worker, and a community minister. Wayne’s hobbies include walking, cycling and football. He is also a bit of a Trekkie.

---

Terry Mills (Trustee/Deacon/Treasurer)

Terry has lived in Calne since 1973. He is one of a large family in Calne, most of whom live in or near Calne. He is married to Ros, and has 2 Children and 4 Grandchildren. He is also a trustee of The Open Blue Trust and secretary of Calne Table Tennis Club.

---

---

Therese Walker (Trustee/Deacon)
Trustee with special responsibility for Safeguarding

I moved to Calne just before Christmas 2022 and share a home with my husband Luke. I was born in Switzerland and after my compulsory education I came to the UK to learn English. I did some further studies which led to me living in Austria, Spain and New Zealand for some time before settling back in the UK.
I have two grown up children who live in Bedfordshire. I work as an administrator for a local Children and Adolescent Mental Health team. In my free time I love baking for everyone's enjoyment at church with a cuppa after the service. I have a heart for people and am looking forward to getting more involved in the church family and the local community.

---

David Witchell (Trustee/Deacon)

Hi, I’m David Witchell, I've lived in Calne since about 2004, when I moved here from London with my wife Roz - we now have five children.  I worked for a while in the environmental cleaning, fire and flood recovery industry, and then returned to the Construction Industry as a general builder and bricklayer.
I got involved teaching vocational students as an instructor in a local S.E.N school, where I provided construction lessons and helped in motor vehicle mechanics and catering. Currently I am working with a local catering company supplying food to many businesses. In my spare time my interests are watching my sons play football in local teams. I was a football coach for about twenty years, at an FA level 1 & 2 grass roots and Junior Premier League for several teams, which included boys and girls. I now have a new qualification as a local beekeeper, which has given me an opportunity to care for our environment. I have a passion and calling to encourage and motivate young people, and have just started volunteering for the boys brigade and girls Association based at our church.

---

Rosina Witchell (Trustee/Deacon)

Hi, my name is Rosina Witchell but I’m known as Roz! I moved from Bromley in Kent around 2004 with my husband Dave. Between us we have five children and two grandchildren. I worked as a part time hair & beauty instructor in a local S.E.N vocational centre, I also managed to gain some experience through an ‘understanding of autism’ course. This opportunity helped me work around our own children, while they were at primary school. I’m now a full-time hairstylist. My interests include listening to Christian music, reading, helping in local community with my hairdressing skills; this involves helping at a local charity centre, offering haircuts to the vulnerable and economically disadvantaged individuals once a month - This is one of my passions to help others in need in today’s society. I’m enjoying serving God here at Calne Baptist Church, where I value my family in Christ.

---

---

Jenny Woods (Trustee/Deacon) Secretary to The Trustees

Hello, I am Jenny Woods and have lived in Calne since 2015 having moved here with Stan from South Wales and before that, High Wycombe and South London. We have three sons and nine grandchildren – hence the move to Wiltshire! We have worshipped and served in the Anglican, Baptist and Assemblies of God churches over the years and now at Calne Baptist Church we are pleased and challenged to worship and serve God both in the church and the community. I have a passion for prayer and families and having recently ended my very long association with 'Homestart'. 

Over the years, Jenny has been a Caseworker with Church of England Children’s Society working on Adoption Cases to court proceedings, Administrative Assistant – Kings College Dental Hospital, Part-time Classroom Assistant – Junior School, two years working Part-time in Nursing Home – Entertainment organiser. Co-ordinator for Headway South Bucks (Brain Injury Support Organisation), recruiting volunteers, running Day Centre, supporting families, organising events, administrative work, liaising with Health Services.  During this time she had a break in paid employment – bringing up family, three boys plus fostering older children.
As a volunteer over many years Jenny has been involved in:  PTA – Junior School, organising events, running children’s work at a large Church in (St. Andrews) High Wycombe, Running Children’s Midweek Club at a church in S. Wales, recruiting volunteers, supporting families, organising special events and running a weekly Parent & Toddler Group, interacting with parents, grandparents etc. organising events, Food Bank and the Youth Group. Also a Volunteer with Probation Service in High Wycombe – Family Support.  Twentyfive years volunteer as family visitor with Homestart in High Wycombe, S. Wales and Calne. Now a volunteer with the Prison Fellowship – contact with local group, Letter Link (writing to Prisoners). Experience of long term fostering - older children including respite care for disabled children.
Administration, typing, experience of supporting families, visiting, cooking, gardening.

Calne Baptist Church - Our History

The church began meeting in a home of Christians in 1655, during the time of religious freedom and nonconformist expansion ushered in by the Commonwealth.  They believed in independence from the state and practised believers’ baptism. However, from 1660, with the restoration of the monarchy, our people were persecuted by the Establishment, and had to meet in secret out of town to avoid arrest, fines or prison.  They used a field at Whitley, which became known as ‘The Gospel Bush’, and Moss’s Mill on the River Marden. 

At this time of oppression, they helped to keep alight the flame of freedom.  This pressure eased from 1690.  For many years there were two churches in Calne – St Mary’s Anglican and Castle Street Chapel, as we were known.

The church was small and continued to be led by laymen, until the Rev Isaac Taylor, aged 21, was appointed the first full time minister in 1776.  An evangelist and educationist, he spearheaded a forward movement, being active in Calne and surrounding districts, but he is mainly remembered for starting a Sunday School in 1804.  This was not only the first Sunday School in Calne, but also the first attempt to provide some basic education for the working children of the town – those who worked in the mills six days a week and had no opportunity to benefit from the relatively few places, for the wealthy, at the Day Schools.  Isaac Taylor was encouraged in this enterprise by the 1st Marquis of Lansdowne.

The first half of the 19th century was a time of ups and downs, partly reflecting the economic fortunes of the town. 
​The present building is of 1817, though altered and added to since.

During the second half of the 19th century and into the 20th century, the church grew and was increasingly community-oriented, particularly during the two periods of ministry of the Rev W H J Page.  A number of church members and officers served as town mayors; and others were involved in various social advances in the town.  The church was a major player in the 1868 provision of the ‘Nonconformist Cemetery’, in Curzon Street (now the town cemetery).  The background to this was that Nonconformists and Catholics could still not be buried in churchyards under their own rites. (Mr Page arranged for a Catholic lady to be buried in the Baptist graveyard so that a priest could officiate.)  This change epitomised their struggle for the full rights of citizenship, which had been denied them during a century and a half of bare toleration.

Community service continued, for example in the provision of special facilities for members of the armed forces during wartime.  Removal of pews and replacement by chairs with carpeting made the building more user-friendly and adaptable for other activities.

Of the four historical themes – freedom; concern for youth; equality; and service – the first and third have been met.  The struggle for freedom and equality is over and we relate to, and act with, other churches.  But the church still works in line with the second and fourth, where needs persist, with other churches where possible.

A full electronic version of our history is available upon application.