Expansion of graveyard at Lancashire Grade II-listed church gets go-ahead

Leaders at Grade II-listed Christ Church in Parbold Hill, Parbold, made the application to West Lancashire Borough Council to change the use of spare land in the church grounds for burial plots.

They said: “The current church graveyard is now rapidly reaching the limit of its capacity. It is therefore proposed that additional plots, approximately 40, can be obtained by using spare land, owned by the church, and consecrated in 2019. The area requires proper and repaired fencing to be in keeping with the current official burial ground. Suitable access paths are already in place from the existing graveyard, so no further works are required for access.”

They added: “The proposed site area is located approximately 77m north from the church, therefore there will be no physical impact on the structure of the listed building.”

The church now has three years to begin the change of use.

History of the church

Christ Church was built in 1875, funded by Miss Ellen Ann Robinson Morris in memory of her mother. The church replaced a small 14th-century chapel known as the Douglas Chapel.

Architecturally, the church is notable for its rock-faced sandstone construction and slate roof. It features a nave, south porch, north aisle, lower chancel, north vestry, and a tower with a stone spire. The interior includes a four-bay arcade with roll-moulded pointed arches on paired granite columns, and a chancel arch with foliated capitals. The church also has historical stained-glass windows, including memorials to those who died in World War I. The pulpit, dating back to 1648, and the early 18th-century font add to its historical significance.