Wigan church launches £1m appeal for improvements as hundreds of homes built

Queen’s Hall Methodist Mission, on Market Street, has been a hub for religion, community and activism.

It was the birthplace of both The Brick and Wigan Athletic, while opera singer and British spy Margery Booth performed there.

Many generations of Wiganers visited its large hall for concerts, school speech days and other events, before its demolition to make way for the bus station in the 1980s.

Now, repairs are needed for its cupola and work is required to improve the building, such as new lighting and heating.

The church community has been galvanised by work to build hundreds of homes in place of The Galleries shopping centre, which will suddenly bring residents to its doorstep.

So it wants to extend its services and facilities to attract more people and support them in many ways.

This includes plans for a heritage room and looking at whether a temporary shelter for homeless people this winter can become a more permanent facility.

Dr John Parker, a preacher at the church, said: “This started because we have to repair the cupola, but we are thinking wider.

"Because they are flattening The Galleries and putting houses there, we started thinking that we will have all these people. Most people have driven here for decades and there will be people who can walk.

"At the moment our footfall is about 660 people per week. We are expecting, if all our plans come to fruition, it will be about 1,000 per week.”

There are plans to apply for a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, while there will also be fund-raising events and people are asked to consider donating to help reach the £1m target.

Trish Green, chief steward at the church, said: "We are going to bid for a Heritage Lottery grant, but we are also hoping that people who have been associated with this building for a long time will donate as well.

"It used to be a massive building and had a great big auditorium. We used to hold concerts and all sorts here.”

Queen’s Hall Methodist Mission hosts four church congregations and a variety of community activities, including a cafe, Alcohol Anonymous meetings, a toddler group and youth meetings.

There are currently 18 beds for homeless people and support is provided for asylum seekers, as well as other outreach work.

The building has housed Adult Community Education (ACE) since 1990, which supports adults with learning disabilities.

Service manager Tracey Helm welcomes plans to improve the building, especially work on the windows, heating and lift.

She said: “It’s just little things that you take for granted that will make a difference.”

Keely Dalfen, CEO at The Brick, said: ‘’Queen’s Hall is a much-loved community asset and an integral part of Wigan town centre. The church has been used by The Brick to provide a base for services for many years and we hope that this will continue for years to come. We wish the church every success in their fund-raising efforts’.”