Conwy church reopens its doors with a weekend of sell-out events

St Mary’s Church in Trefriw welcomed the community back since the pandemic with a sold-out weekend of events, marking a new chapter for the historic Conwy Valley building.

Supported by Creu Conwy’s Winter Sounds Festival, St Mary’s Church hosted the January Winter Sounds concert, which featured bilingual artists Elliw & Alaw and LoFi Jones. The weekend continued with a community supper at the Village Hall and a screening of 2025’s Ballad of Wallis Island starring Carey Mulligan in partnership with Trefriw Film Club, highlighting the building’s potential as a cultural hub.

The weekend events are part of a broader effort to shape the church’s future. Since the pandemic, St Mary’s has had no regular congregation, and its long-term role in the village is being decided through community consultation rather than traditional church processes.

Thanks to a grant from the National Churches Trust, a listening exercise led by Iwan Williams from creative development organisation Ffiwsar is now underway, gathering residents’ ideas for how the church could be used in the years ahead. 

Alongside public events, quieter activities are emerging, including monthly candle-lit Christian meditation sessions which begins on Sunday 25 January.

Local priest and village resident Revd Eryl Parry says, “What struck me most about the weekend was how people relaxed into the space. You could feel curiosity and possibility growing as the music filled the building. The church felt like it was really coming alive.”

Revd Eryl adds, “Our churches have been praying about the future of St Mary’s for a long time. We see this new chapter as something growing out of that prayer, not something we rush or control, but something we discover together with the community. Where are we heading? What's it going to look like? God knows! Watch this space. It's going to be fun."

St Mary’s Trefriw is part of the Gwydyr Ministry Area, a vibrant community of churches located in the Conwy Valley, including Betws-y-Coed and Dolgarrog, and is part of the Diocese of Bangor.

Photos by Mark McNulty