The Parish of Cootamundra decided to close the St James Anglican Church, Stockinbingal, in 2019 when attendance was not high enough to match the costs of maintaining the building.

In February, Cootamundra Reverend Captain Yvonne Gunning attended a community meeting at Stockinbingal to inform residents of the parish's decision to sell the church.

Stockinbingal resident James Coleborne wrote to the Anglican Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn bishop, who oversees the parish, saying residents were "angry" with the decision to sell.

"We feel like we've been sold out," he said.

"It's been there for 111 years and been through floods, droughts and two world wars."

But Ms Gunning said Mr Coleborne had not attended services at the church prior to its closure.

"He's not a [church] member and he never actually has been," she said.

"No one was coming and the main church had to pay the bills."

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Mr Coleborne said he and 10 other residents had approached the diocese with a plan to fund services in the church and to cover all upkeep costs themselves, if it was guaranteed the building would not be sold for another three years.

Ms Gunning said the plan has come too late.

"Why was the plan not proposed in 2019 when the building was closed?" she said.

"[The church] is not viable and it hasn't been since I arrived in 2018."

Mr Coleborne said while the congregation had diminished in recent years, the community was planning to hold their own church service at the Ellwood Hall on the first weekend of September.

"We're prepared to run our own community church until the decision is made," he said.

Ms Gunning said all money raised from the sale of the church will go towards the Cootamundra parish.

"The time has come for us," she said.

"We're not going to cut back staff to have a building sitting unused in Stockinbingal."

Stockinbingal is home to about 350 residents.

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