'We are fighting to save our church from closure'

A group of parishioners who have begun a fight to save their historical church from closure have said they are "a network that is dependent on each other".

Brindle St Joseph's RC Church in Preston is set to close at the end of August after Ampleforth Abbey in Yorkshire - which has run the church for the last 350 years - announced it would recall its staff.

The Abbey said the decision had been due to "manpower" because of a declining number of priests and it had handed the running of the parish to the Archdiocese of Liverpool, who had decided it could not take it on.

Parishioner Bren Cook said the closure announcement was "like everyone in the congregation had been slapped".

Mr Cook told BBC Radio Lancashire: "It's not just a parish, it's a community."

"It's a group of people who know each other," he added.

Another of the congregation, Mick Gardner, said: "Our complaint is we weren't given a chance to come up with alternatives, and there are alternatives.

"It's a really complicated web of activity around here - there's the church, the parish hall, there's people living out there.

"It's a network that is dependent on each other."

The church had been a site of continuous worship since 1721, he added.

Mr Gardner said the parishioners were pushing for a "proper dialogue" with the Abbey and the Archdiocese.

"Normally churches do have a period of consultation, we've not had that," he said.

However, secretary for the Ampleforth Abbey Trust Liam Kelly said parishioners had been told in 2011 that the parish priest would be the last one the Abbey could provide.

"The reality is personnel, manpower - the number of priests is declining," he said.

"We do not have people to staff, to manage these parishes.

"We need monks at Ampleforth Abbey."

Suzanne Roberts, who has been teaching dance classes at the church's associated hall for 43 years, said its closure could have an impact on the mental health of the community.

She said the hall, which also hosts classes like karate, "provides a happy and safe place for youth to go".

Ms Roberts said her dance students were "absolutely devastated".

Mr Kelly said the next step would be "a discussion between the Abbey and the Archbishop of Liverpool", but that could not happen until after the new Archbishop was installed on 27 May.

"Really, we all share the same goal which is seeking sustainable, feasible, realistic pastoral provision for the people of St Joseph's Brindle."

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