St Hugh & St John

Introduction

In 1983 St Margaret Ward became established as a parish in its own right, taking in portions of the parishes of St Hugh's and All Saints, Sale.

History

The old church was turned into a parish centre on a tight budget and with a great deal of voluntary help. In March 2015, a large part of the car park was fenced off and the old building demolished to make way for a new parish centre. The new Parish Centre was opened in spring 2016. The foundation stone from the demolished St John the Baptist Church was installed in the meeting room of the new parish centre as a memorial of the union of the two parishes.

Architecture and furnishings

The new church has a pyramid roof built on a perfect square, supported by four beams from the corners and emphasised by the pitch-pine roof. The new church was purpose-built to suit the changes brought by Vatican II. After the new church was in use, the small organ was found not to fit well, the layout of the benches was altered to provide side aisles, and the loft was boarded to provide storage space. The tiled plinth for the tabernacle was encased in wood with the carved head of Christ on the front panel.

Carpet was laid over the quarry tiles in the new church to deaden noise and make cleaning easier. The new church had a very narrow porch, which was effectively cut in two when the inner doors were open. A statue of the Risen Christ was purchased thanks to a bequest from John Blyth and installed high on the wall behind the main altar. In 2000, permission was obtained to extend the porch outwards, incorporating facilities for the disabled and for baby-changing.

In 2001, the statue of St Hugh was repainted with a bright red robe and a rejuvenated white swan. The old stone font from the original St Hugh's Church was adapted and turned into a fountain outside the doors of the new church. In 2021, the church was refurbished, moving the tabernacle to the centre of the rear wall, widening the sanctuary, fitting new church doors and laying new carpets. In the side chapel which used to hold the tabernacle were placed the brightly re-painted statue of St Hugh and a newly-acquired dramatic statue of St John the Baptist. The wooden statue of the Virgin and Child was installed in the Lady Chapel, to the left of the Sanctuary, in the Church of St Hugh and St John.

Music and liturgy

A Folk Mass was held with guitars and rock music, and a Folk Group was established. The Lincoln Singers choir was established and continued until their disbandment in 1992. The Living Waters Prayer Group, founded in 1986, is still running in the porch of the Church of St Hugh and St John today. The church was discovered to have excellent acoustics and was popular with choirs for their rehearsals, concerts and even some recording sessions.

Parish life

The parish hall was used by groups like the UCM, the Lincoln Singers, Brownies and the Tuesday Group, which provided weekly meetings for pensioners. The parish held daily Adoration and some services of the Word and Communion during the week in the old presbytery chapel.

Regular events

The parish held an annual Garden Party on the large lawn at the rear of the presbytery. An annual Christmas Dinner for the over-sixties took place in Christ Church Hall. The parish held a May procession on the first Sunday of May, with a May Queen. The parish held an annual senior parishioners' meal in the parish hall. The parish held Days of Recollection for Ministers of the Eucharist, alternating between full away days and half-days in the presbytery.