How to plan a church seating layout

Whether you're building, renovating or rearranging a sanctuary, the questions are the same: how many people fit, how wide the aisles should be, and whether everyone can get out quickly. Drawn to scale, the plan answers them before anyone moves a pew.

1. Measure the room and mark what's fixed

Draw the hall at its real size with the doors, windows, columns, heating and the platform or chancel. Mark the exits first, because every aisle has to lead to one, and in a place of worship the doors should open outwards.

2. Set the chancel and the front row

Place the altar or communion table, the pulpit or lectern, the choir and any instruments. Leave about 6 to 8 feet between the front of the platform and the first row, so people can come forward for communion, a baptism or a wedding without squeezing past the front pew.

3. Lay out the aisles

A centre aisle of 5 to 6 feet suits processions, weddings and funerals. Side aisles of at least 3 to 4 feet keep the ends of the rows reachable and lead to the side exits. Your local building code sets the minimum widths for the number of people seated, so check it.

4. Add the rows at a steady spacing

Space pews about 36 to 40 inches from back to back. Closer feels cramped when people stand and kneel; wider leaves room for kneelers and for a wheelchair space at the end of a row. In DrawPlans, pews are under Events & commercial in the toolbar, drawn at their real size; set one to your pew length and copy it down the room.

5. Count the seats and check the exits

Allow about 18 to 20 inches of pew per person and add up the rows. Then check the exits: the number of doors and their widths depend on how many people the room seats. Export a scaled PDF for the building committee, the contractor or the fire officer. Start from the church template, or the conference setup for a hall used with chairs.