St. Margaret Clitherow

Introduction

The Parish of St Margaret Clitherow was formed in 1977, and the church building was erected in 1985.

Architecture and furnishings

The church was designed by architect John H Black of Huddersfield. The 40th anniversary of the first Mass at St Margaret Clitherow was celebrated on 30 August 2025.

The craftwork was carried out by Martin Johnson and Co, of York. The window was installed in May 2009 after 18 months of fundraising. Graeme Willson, an artist from Ilkley, designed the window, which is split into six windows with a wooden sculpture of Christ in the centre. The six window apertures are ‘pulled together’ into a unified whole around the sculptural figure of Christ above the tabernacle.

Christ as the ‘Light of the World’, the focus of faith, is but the prelude to the full glory of the resurrection which is about to burst forth from the eclipse and encompass all of creation. In a glass area of 272 sq ft cost is bound to be an important consideration, as complicated work is very costly. The detailed work is more or less confined to the largest of the five openings along the south wall, and the other four are conceived as a curtain-like area of light colour, dominated by vertical lines and harmonising with the general scheme.

There is a suggestion of the Shambles, where St Margaret lived, balanced by her name, the lower part of the composition gave room for a subsidiary theme. It shows a closed door for the imprisonment of ideas, the oppression of minorities and the enmity which disfigures human affairs, to the right, and another door, open to enlightenment – in this case to the Christian faith. The complicated scrollwork in blue and purple sets off the calmness of the main figure and in the apex of the window are the crown and palms of martyrdom.

Parish life

The parish's Third World Group was renamed 'World Needs Group' on 6 April 2025. The parish holds two dedicated collections for CAFOD each year, on Lent Fast Day and Harvest Fast Day. The parish holds an annual collection for Stella Maris on the second Sunday in July. The patronal feast day is 30 August, dedicated to St Margaret Clitherow.

Notable people and events

Harry Harvey, 88, who died on 29 January 2011, lives on in his work in 70 Yorkshire churches, as well as York’s Guildhall and the Astronomical Clock in York Minister. Mr Harvey was brought up in Birmingham and moved to York in 1947 at the invitation of respected peer Harry Stammers, who had been asked to revive the York School of Glass Painting.

Visiting

The parish runs a Fairtrade stall, usually on the second Saturday or Sunday of each month. The full explanation of the stained glass window design can be seen in the church.