Country United Kingdom Website www.olshweston.org Parish Bedworth | Denomination Roman Catholic Dedicated 1883 Archbishop Bernard Longley | |
Location Rye Piece Ringway, Bedworth, Warwickshire Dedication Saint Francis of Assisi Archdiocese Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham | ||
The Roman Catholic Parish of Saint Francis of Assisi is located in Bedworth, Warwickshire, England. The parish is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham and a part of the Rugby Deanery. The current Parish Priest is Fr. Michael Gamble. The parish is jointly administered with the neighbouring parish of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Bulkington (whilst still remaining technically separate). Working alongside the diocesan clergy are a group of Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.
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Brief history
The church was originally opened in June 1883. Casting a tentative shadow over Rye Piece, (a little side-street in the middle of the town), it was built at a time when Catholics were, unfortunately, still viewed with suspicion. It was a modest, oblong structure built in traditional Victorian redbrick with a small schoolroom running along the west side.
The money to build it was raised by the priest, Fr Pius, not entirely from his sparse congregation but by simply begging all over the country. Funds for further development were supplemented by two long-running novenas dedicated to St Peter of Alcantara and St Francis Xavier.
In 1894 a school was built close to the church. Originally big enough to accommodate some 150 pupils aged from 4 to 14 years, eventually it was superseded by a new school. It is now a nursery.
The church itself was extended finally into its present form to be consecrated on 4 September 1923 and one of the hundreds of Catholic churches built following the Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829. A memorial to all the dedicated priests and parishioners of the past, particularly Fr Francis (1892 – 1912). He was a legend in his own lifetime whose French background undoubtedly influenced the unique character of the church. He acquired land around the church to build the new school, the presbytery, to build social housing and he bought an old brewery to serve as a social club. So the Catholic community which had first congregated in a disused shop in one of Bedworth’s many yards, then a small chapel, finally had its own church, yet with the sanctuary at the west end and opposite to the original.
Today it is in need of repair and modernisation to conform to health and safety legislation. During its long life the church has survived wars and recession, the upheavals of Vatican II, town re-development and the ebb and flow of congregations and priests. Now it stands proudly and prominently, a Victorian gem on the busy Rye Piece ring road surrounded by beautiful gardens and enhanced by a Calvary and a grotto in honour of Our Lady of Lourdes.