CASE STUDY ST WALBURGE'S, PRESTON

LAST YEAR news that the Diocese of Lancaster was to close 10 churches in England's Catholic heartland was made worse by the fact that the list of threatened churches included "the jewel of Lancashire".
Built in /854, St Walburge's stands at 309 ft and is the tallest church in Britain (and only four cathedrals surpass it). It was paid for by Preston's "poor, proud, papist" population. or as The Times put it: "The expression of the intense piety of some of the poorest people in England."
But Mass attendance in Lancaster has fallen by two-thirds since 1974 and the diocese found itself in £10m of debt, while St Walburge's has a congregation of only 100 a week. Nearby St Mark's church has already been turned into flats.
The campaign was led by Cllr Margaret McManus, a parishioner of 30 years, who said: "St Walburge's is the gem of the churches in Preston and we should be thinking about giving it cathedral status rather than closing it.
"This is our heritage. The people of Preston built and paid for these churches. It isn't our fault that the diocese hasn't used their funds efficiently enough." In November it was also report ed that the Italian-based Institute of Christ the King wanted to take over the running of the church. A private donor reportedly offered to give £100,000 if the Institute was given the go-ahead.
In March the diocese published a document that explained how parishes could be organised: "Sacred Heart, Preston, and St Walburge, Preston, already linked, [will] merge into a new parish soon." St Walburge's would no longer be used for Mass by 2010.
While the document recognised the importance of St Walburge's as a Grade 1 listed building, it stated: "It is very large and it is accepted that it is too costly to be maintained by the parish or the diocese.
Rumours circulate of the church being made into either an interfaith centre or a conference centre, something the bishop has called "absolute rubbish".
Bishop Patrick O'Donoghue told the Herald: "This is hype at the parish level to try and dissuade us. We have a mission review:Me finding will be published at the end of July, and they're trying to put pressure on us."
But while St Walburge's has one of the smallest congregations of the endangered, its future is the most secure, if only because outside agencies may well provide the £25m that will be needed to save the church. In March the English Heritage and Lottery Fund joint grants scheme gave £134,000 for repairs.