A Brief History

The church is situated at the northern end of Sevenoaks towards the top of St. John's Hill on the area originally known as Gallows Common.  It takes its name from the medieval Hospital of St. John the Baptist, Augustinian in foundation, which stood further down the hill, near the Bat and Ball crossroads.  Historically, in what was then a rural area, this was the 'poor' end of Sevenoaks, not only the site of the gallows (where a variety of criminals had been executed since early medieval times, including supporters of Wyatt's Rebellion in 1554) but also the parish workhouse, which was demolished in 1845.

When, in the early part of the 1800s, a village community began to develop in this area, the need for a local parish church also grew, as the parish church of St. Nicholas was some distance away at the southern end of the town. Thomas Curteis, the Rector of St. Nicholas, made arrangements for the construction of a chapel of ease. The original part of the church, dedicated in 1858, was built of local Kentish ragstone on land donated by the Marquis of Camden. The north aisle and baptistery were added in 1878, also built of Kentish ragstone. In 1900 a magnificent red brick church was planned but, with World War I looming, only the first stage was completed, adding the present east end and Lady Chapel built in red brick. The result is not architecturally beautiful but it is a significant building in the parish. The adjoining parish room was completed in 1910.

St. John's Church became the focal point of the parish in the northern part of Sevenoaks.  The main town centre is beyond the hill about a mile to the south, so the community around St. John's parish church continued to expand.  The first railway station to serve the town opened at the foot of the hill in 1862 at Bat and Ball and this brought more employment and development to the parish.  Large houses were built to accommodate those who were now able to live outside London and commute by train, and industry (such as the gas works and brickworks) expanded, together with housing to accommodate the workers. Schools (including St. John's National School built opposite the church in 1870), shops, businesses and churches and chapels of other denominations were built.

The parish continues to be a thriving area today, with several local shops and businesses still trading.  Many of the sites of the large houses have now been redeveloped as flats or smaller houses, St. John's School has been relocated to the former Bayham Road Boys' School at the top of Quaker's Hall Lane and maintains strong links with the church.  Another local primary school and a girls' independent senior and junior school also use it.

St. John's is a church in the Catholic tradition.  Mass has been celebrated daily since the 1920s, when Fr. Hawkes was appointed as Vicar by the new patrons, the Guild of All Souls, and over the years the building has been enhanced by many gifts.  There are several stained glass windows, representing each era of the building’s history, the oldest being that of Our Lord with Children in what is now the ‘crèche’.  The most recent additions are by Caroline Benyon; two of a series of four have already been installed in the south wall of the nave.  The interior of the church was refurbished by Laurence King in the 1960s.