List of places of worship in Woking (borough)

Shah Jahan Mosque was Britain's first mosque and "perhaps the most historically significant of the town's buildings, as well as one of the most beautiful".[1]

There are more than 50 current and former places of worship in the borough of Woking, one of 11 local government districts in the English county of Surrey. The mostly urban area, centred on the Victorian railway town of Woking, is ethnically and demographically diverse. As well as churches and chapels representing England's main Christian denominations, Woking is home to Britain's oldest purpose built mosque, a Buddhist temple and an Eastern Orthodox church (part of a monastery and shrine to Edward the Martyr, who is buried there). Anglican parish churches in surrounding villages such as Pyrford, Old Woking and Byfleet are among the oldest buildings in the borough.

Eleven places of worship in the borough have listed status. A building is defined as "listed" when it is placed on a statutory register of buildings of "special architectural or historic interest" in accordance with the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990.[2] The Department for Culture, Media and Sport, a Government department, is responsible for this; Historic England (formerly English Heritage), a non-departmental public body, acts as an agency of the department to administer the process and advise the department on relevant issues.[3] There are three grades of listing status. Grade I, the highest, is defined as being of "exceptional interest"; Grade II* is used for "particularly important buildings of more than special interest"; and Grade II, the lowest, is used for buildings of "special interest".[4] As of February 2001, there were four Grade I-listed buildings, eight with Grade II* status and 50 Grade II-listed buildings in Woking borough.[5] The Shah Jahan Mosque was upgraded from Grade II* to Grade I status in March 2018.[6]

  1. ^ Crosby 2003, p. 88.
  2. ^ "Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (c. 9)". The UK Statute Law Database. Ministry of Justice. 24 May 1990. Archived from the original on 27 January 2013. Retrieved 24 July 2013.
  3. ^ "What English Heritage Does". English Heritage. 2012. Archived from the original on 8 February 2013. Retrieved 24 July 2013.
  4. ^ "Listed Buildings". English Heritage. 2012. Archived from the original on 26 January 2013. Retrieved 24 July 2013.
  5. ^ "Images of England — Statistics by County (Surrey)". Images of England. English Heritage. 2007. Archived from the original on 28 October 2013. Retrieved 10 June 2015.
  6. ^ Historic England. "Shah Jehan Mosque, Oriental Road (Grade I) (1264438)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 March 2018.