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12
Mar
Historic Greenhow church looks set to close
St Mary's Church in Greenhow looks set to close its doors.
The church, located in the highest village in the Harrogate district, has served Nidderdale since 1858. But, Darryl Hall, vicar of the united parish of Upper Nidderdale, yesterday said on social media the parish is beginning the formal process of closing the church.
A meeting will be held at the church on April 1, where a member of the diocese will outline the reasons behind the closure.
Reverend Hall told the Stray Ferret the church needs "too much doing to do it", but with rising costs of repairs and only 12 regular members, the congregation is not big enough to justify spending the money required.
St Mary’s Church does not have heating, but there are five other churches in the parish with heating and “thriving congregations” just a few miles from Greenhow.
The closure process could take between nine months to one-year, Reverend Hall said, but added if good enough reasons to keep the church open are presented, the diocese can “put the brakes on” the closure.
He added:
St Mary’s Church has done what it was designed to do. We need to celebrate that and try not to make this a negative.
The parish as a whole is thriving. We have a strong youth club, our Food for Thought talks bring in people from as far as Wakefield and the churches offer different types of services.
Reverend Hall said members of the congregation and residents of Greenhow will be able to voice their concerns at the meeting.
“It looks like St Mary’s Church may close, but that is not a failure – we should celebrate that the church has served its purpose”, he added.
Wayside Cemetery will remain open and maintained despite the church closure.
The meeting will be held at St Mary's Church in Greenhow at 7pm.
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