Country England Churchmanship Polish Deanery St. Francis (Bedford) Status Parish church | Denomination Roman Catholic Functional status Active Phone +44 1234 266901 Groundbreaking 1846 | |
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Dedication Sacred Heart
Cuthbert of Lindisfarne Address Mill St, Bedford MK40 3EU, UK Diocese Roman Catholic Diocese of Northampton Similar St Peter's Church - Bedford, St Paul's Church - Bedford, Bedford St Johns railway st, Christ Church - Jerusalem, Cristo de la Concordia | ||
The Polish Church of Sacred Heart of Jesus & St Cuthbert is a Roman Catholic Church serving the Polish community in Bedford, England. It is a Grade II listed building.
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History
There have been religious buildings on the site since the eighth century, but the current church building was originally constructed as an Anglican church in 1846-7 in a neo-Norman style, and was known simply as St Cuthbert. The architect for the north and south aisles, which were added in 1865, was Francis Penrose. The north transept porch was constructed in 1907. Declared redundant by the Church of England in 1974, the church was subsequently purchased by the Harpur Trust who presented it to the Polish population of Bedford, whereupon its name was changed.
Parish
In addition to serving the Polish community, the church also hosted a regular Tridentine Mass said by the priests of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter for a few years, but this later moved to Flitwick.