The Beginnings of the Church in Aintree

Until long after the First World War, Aintree was just a small agricultural village comprising of six farms, farm labourers' cottages, a school and school house, two inns, a blacksmith’s forge and a world famous racecourse.

The first signs of change came about when new houses were built for the managerial staff of the new British Enka factory which was just starting production on the opposite side of the Manchester and Liverpool Canal.

About three years later, a new company known as The Sefton Building Co Ltd, acquired land near the ‘Blue Anchor’ Inn and began to build houses there. It wasn’t long before the same company started to build more houses at the opposite end of the village, near the main road from Liverpool to the North. This then started a rush of building that lasted until the beginning of the Second World War.

At that time, Aintree Village was located in the Parish of S Peter, which was situated more than a mile away, off Warbreck Moor, in the City of Liverpool. Soon the residents on the new housing estate were appealing to the Parish Church to provide something in the way of a Sunday School, and in 1934 staff from S Peter’s Sunday School were seconded to work in Aintree Village.

The next step in the development of church life in Aintree Village came in 1936 when the Rev’d E.J. Button was appointed as Assistant Curate to S Peter’s Church and given special responsibility for the Village of Aintree. From this time, regular services were held in the Jubilee Hall, now the site of the ‘Blue Anchor’ car park. The first services were held on Sunday evenings and from this beginning, the Church life of Aintree Village was formed.

It was only natural to expect that once church life in the village had been established, the people would want to have a church building of their own. Through the kind offices of the Diocesan Board of Finance, money became available for the erection of a temporary church. The building, a combination of church and hall, was constructed of timber and cement and had a seating capacity of about 300 in the main hall. There was a chancel at one end of the building which could be screened off, and a stage at the other. There was also a classroom, vestries for the clergy and choir, and a kitchen. The Education Authority were also able to use the building as a temporary school. This building was opened and dedicated to S Giles, by the Bishop of Warrington, the Right Rev’d H. Gresford Jones, on S Giles day, 1 September 1938.

Sadly however, in the early hours of 13 September 1941, a fire completely destroyed the whole building and all the work that people had put into making their new church beautiful was now just a charred mess. The cause of the fire was never discovered. All that is known is that it was not due to enemy action, as was the case with so many other churches which were destroyed about that time.

Once again, the people of Aintree Village were without a church building. Services and Sunday School continued to be held in Rose Cottage, Rosetta Cottage and Jubilee Hall. Eventually the Lancashire Education Authority built three concrete huts on the site of the former church for use as a day school, and by mutual agreement it was decided that the church should be able to use the huts at weekends and in the evenings for services and meetings.

Each week on Friday and Saturday, the school furniture was moved out of one of the huts and it was equipped for the Sunday Services, then on Sunday evening after the final service, the process was reversed and the building was prepared for the day school next morning. This arrangement continued until Easter 1951, when the new day school was completed.

The church then took possession of the three huts on payment of a nominal sum of £100 to the Lancashire Education Authority.

Considerable alterations were made to the first hut immediately after the church took possession. A chancel and communion rails were erected at one end and an altar placed in position. The whole building was redecorated, both inside and out by the men of the church during their spare time and a number of pews were acquired from a disused school chapel at Newsham Park. When all the alterations and renovations were completed, the first hut was used exclusively as a church.

The last service to be held in this temporary church was Evensong on Passion Sunday, 18 March, 1956. For many this was a somewhat sad occasion, for the family of S Giles had become very attached to the ‘Little Church’ because the very smallness of the building had created a friendly and homely atmosphere.

 

Page last updated 31.01.05 © St Giles Aintree 2005 - 2006