South Shoebury has two Anglican churches dedicated to St. Andrew the Apostle and to St. Peter.
The Anglican Churches of South Shoebury are evangelical with the services at St. Andrew's being more traditional than at St. Peter's.
St. Andrew's
The Parish Church of St. Andrew's was founded between 1100 and 1140 as an outreach of the Priory at Prittlewell, itself an outreach of the Priory of Cluny in France. It is one of the most interesting and complete specimens of Norman architecture in the neighbourhood.
Fairly small (100 - 130 people at maximum) it consists of a flint rubble tower with nave and chancel of ragstone rubble with Caen stone quoins. There are excellent stained glass windows which together with the interior have been considerably renovated within the last five years.
Mixed ages across the various services with a number of the more senior citizens with a solid Church of England tradition together with younger families.
This church is surrounded by the parish churchyard, still open at the time of writing (May 1997) but likely to be full within 18 months.
The first St. Peter's was "a temporary iron church" erected in 1899 to serve local brickworkers and their families. The present St. Peter's, built in 1862, was originally the Church School and Chapel of Ease, with typical Victorian architecture.
When the new school (now Hinguar County Primary School) opened in 1886 the old school became an annex, was then used as church hall from 1911 and in 1920 given to the Parish and dedicated as the "new" St. Peter's. The building is in good repair with excellent heating and lighting.
It has moveable seating and can take 150 people comfortably.
Mixed ages, mixed tradition and ranging from new to mature Christians.
