St George’s Church Tonyrefail Finds Its Voice Again | Excel
When St George’s Church Found Its Voice Again
For the first time in many years, St George’s Church in Tonyrefail was filled with song again.
At the launch of our new headquarters, the Llantrisant Male Choir stood in the space and sang. It was a quiet, powerful moment, and for our team, a proud one too. For a building that had been quiet for so long, hearing voices return to it felt right.
St George’s Church has always held a place in the life of the local community.
It was built in 1925 as a war memorial, the idea of Reverend George Kendall after his time as a military chaplain during the First World War. Having buried so many young men, he wanted to create something lasting in their memory.
The building came together through the efforts of local people. Land was donated. Stone was gathered and carried. Families contributed what they could, and many helped to build it. When it opened, the village turned out in force. Hymns filled the space, echoing out onto Mill Street as people gathered to remember and to stand together.
Over time, the church closed its doors and sat quiet for many years.
Today, St George’s is home to Excel Home Design’s headquarters and showroom. After years of work to bring the building back into use, seeing it open again and filled with life is something the whole team is incredibly proud of. It’s a working space, designed to take clients through the process of planning and building their homes, from early ideas through to completion. The building has been adapted to support that experience, while still holding on to the character that made it what it was.
Respecting the past, building for the future
What stands today isn’t a replica of what was there before, but its character hasn’t been stripped away either.
The original bath stone windows have been carefully restored. The timber roof structure remains overhead, with its exposed beams still visible across the space. Sections of the original stonework have been kept and worked into the new design. At the same time, the building has been opened up and strengthened to support a completely new way of using it.
It now works as a modern, open-plan showroom. But you can still read the history in the fabric of the building if you look for it.
That balance is what made the launch feel like more than just an opening event.
A New Purpose for St George’s
As the Llantrisant Male Choir sang, the building was once again doing something familiar. Not in the same way, and not for the same reason, but in a way that still brought people together.
While the purpose of the space has changed, it remains a place where people come together. It’s now where our clients begin shaping their own homes. A place to explore ideas, understand what’s possible, and see how a project will come together before anything starts on site. From those first conversations through to handover, the process is guided, considered and built around the way people want to live.
Get in touch
If you’re thinking about your own project, you can now experience that in a setting that is unlike anywhere else, shaped by a building with its own story and a team that understands what it takes to bring one to life.
Get in touch to arrange an appointment and see the space for yourself.
If you would like to book a no-obligation Creative Meeting with our Award Winning Director then please click here or call us on 01443 561 540.