An Exciting New Era Dawns for Orrell St. James’

One of the oldest parishes in what is now the Liverpool Archdiocese, it has had a long standing presence in the Orrell area- starting in 1699 on Springs Road, near the present day Heinz factory. Because of the Reformation it was a time of great difficulty for Catholics to practice their faith and Priests were trained abroad and sent as Missionaries. It was subsequently called the Crossbrook Mission and served the districts of Orrell, Pemberton, Up Holland, and the northern part of Billinge.

The Crossbrook Mission served until 1805 when legislative changes allowed Catholic Churches, to be built, albeit with some restrictions, and penalties for being a Catholic were relaxed. In 1805 the Mission moved to its present site on what was then Moor Ditch Lane, Far Moor and renamed St Serenus. The Industrial Revolution was in full swing and the Orrell Coal Field exported huge quantities via the newly built Leeds–Liverpool Canal at Gathurst.

As time went on, other Parishes were formed and the boundaries of the modern day Parish of St. James’ now meet the neighbouring parishes of St Teresa’s, St Bernadette’s, St Cuthbert’s, St Aidan’s, St Mary’s and St Richard’s.

The Parish school was built pre 1840 and extended over subsequent years to its present size. The Parish too was instrumental in the building of St Peters Catholic High School and St John Rigby College both of which are within the parish boundary. But what is little known is that, at the time when the geographical area of the Parish was much bigger, the Parish built a second school All Hallows in Roby Mill in 1875.

The current Church has been extended over many years and was enlarged to its present size in 1841 with the Bell Tower being built in 1882. Further developments and refurbishments have been carried out over the subsequent years including a Memorial Chapel to the War Dead, a Parish Club, Bowling Green and a Meeting Room.

Having not been redecorated since 2008, the church was in need of some tender loving care. When Father Philip Kehoe arrived as Parish Priest in February 2023, he promised the parishioners he would bring the Church back, as far as possible, to its previous splendour- a building to be proud of. Father Philip also wanted the Church renovation completed for The Parishes 325th year Anniversary which falls on 1st December 2024.

With the assistance of a highly skilled and committed Parish Support Group, discussions took place with the relevant people in the Archdiocese. The Archdiocese appointed a Project Manager who worked closely with Father Philip and the Support Group to plan the restoration and refurbishment of the building and its fittings.

Before works could begin, an added complication was thrown into the mix due to the Church being a Grade 2 listed building meaning that there were a number of regulatory steps to go through.

One of these steps involved meeting with the Art and Architecture Committee of the Liverpool Archdiocese, to discuss and agree items such as colours of paint to be used, renovations to the Stations of the Cross and reviewing historical pictures of the Church from the early 1900s in order to ensure that any redecoration was consistent with the Churches previous look. Another major step was to get agreement from the Catholic Historical Church Committee (HCC) for the Project Plan to go forward. All of this took a few months to get full agreement before works could begin and there were times when it looked like they would not be completed in time for the 325th Anniversary Celebrations.

All permissions were finally granted at the end of September from the HCC and the appointed Contractor (Greenmount Projects) started the work. The Church closed on 23rd September, with weekend Masses taking place in the Main Hall at nearby St James’ Catholic Primary School and midweek masses in the meeting room at the back of Church.

Pleasingly, the project has been completed on time and the first Mass in the newly opened Church will be this Sunday 1st December at 11.15am with the Archbishop of Liverpool Malcolm McMahon concelebrating the Mass alongside Father Philip and previous Parish Priests/Priests from the Parish. There is then a celebratory buffet at St’ James’ Social Centre after for all Parishioners.

Chair of the Parish Support Group Paul Carey said, “It has been a very time pressured process in order to complete the works in time for the 325th anniversary celebrations. A massive thank you to all at Greenmount Projects in ensuring this project has completed on time as well as to Richard Morris from the Liverpool Archdiocese Property Service for his outstanding Project Management.”

Eager to signal a new era for the Parish, Father Philip and the Parish Support Group wanted to involve the schools and colleges from the Parish in the Anniversary preparations in order to leave a legacy for the next generations.

St James Catholic Primary School, St Peters High School and St John Rigby College have all been involved and have produced fantastic artwork focusing on the history of St James and the Parish’s 325yrs existence. St. James’ Catholic Primary School pupils producing the artwork for a magnificent Faux stained glass window which reflects the history of the Parish.

Paul remarked, “The artwork that has been produced is exceptional and I would like to thank all three organisations for their unwavering support of this project. Parishioners cannot fail to be impressed by the artwork- a true nod to the history and traditions of the Parish.”

The inside of the Church has undergone a stunning transformation that has given the Church a modern look whilst at the same time respecting the history and traditions of the church.

Anyone attending the Mass this Sunday or worshipping there subsequently will be very impressed.