The Parish
St Matthew's is a very large parish by suburban standards stretching from the centre of Surbiton into the outskirts of Chessington. It lies right on the Anglican Diocese of Southwark's boundary with the Diocese of Guildford. The population is some 18,000 and the largest and fastest growing section of the community are the in the 25 to 40 age bracket. Housing is generally fairly expensive throughout the area, but the majority in the parish is owner occupied.
The A3 highway runs through the parish as do the main road from the A3 to Kingston and the Kingston to Leatherhead road.
The parish contains a lot of small businesses and shops although it is mostly residential. About half the working population commute to London via the A3 or by rail from Tolworth or Surbiton station, the latter having very fast services to London Waterloo.
Originally an ordinary parish with a Parish Church and a Daughter Church, in 2008 we became a Team Misistry. The Tolworth Team currently contains St Matthew's, Surbiton and St Georges, Tolworth working together as equals.
Tolworth Hospital (psycho-geriatric) is in the middle of the parish and there are several residential and nursing homes, as well as a number of homes for people with learning difficulties.
There are six schools in the parish, including St Matthew's Primary School. In 1993 we converted our church hall in Douglas Road into a community Arts Centre, run by a Charitable Trust. This is now known as The Corner House and it has developed into a thriving arts centre with frequent productions involving the local community.
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[THE CHURCH] [HISTORY]