LACK OF CHURCHES

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIII, 17 July 1929, Page 8

LACK OF CHURCHES

ENGLAND'S GROWING NEED 'CHILDREN WITHOUT; GUIDANCE" The necessity for building.churches in : the new townships that arc springing up h England as a result of post-war housing schemes- is strongly urged in tho report of the Incorporated Church Building Society for 1928. Tho society was formed in 1818. "The most urgent point of all is tho children;" says the Archbishop of York, "These new- areas are swarming with children, and there is no place for them to be gathered'together for religious purposes." The now houses, he adds, were mostly occupied by newly-married people, who were at a stage when they were apt to form new habits. It was of the utmost importance that churches should be built to which they coukl'-at-tach themselves before the church-go-ing habit was broken. Tho report instances the case of Birmingham, where the council in post-war years has erected 35,012 new houses on spaces which 10 years ago were green fields, all within five miles of the centre of the city. "This," adds the report, "has involved the displacement of .200,000 people, and the Church is faced with the tremendous task of trying to. keep up with this mighty change." Becontree, with its 12,000 new houses occupied and another 12,000 soon to be built; Bellingham, soon to be larger ■ than Southampton-; Coventry, continually expanding—these-are other examples 'given of' "changing England." Tho report shows that 86 grants were made in 1928, an increase of 14 on the previous year. Since the society's formation 10,362 grants, amounting to £1,162.780, have been made from tho general fund, in addition! to £32,225 granted to- mission buildings. It has helped to erect 2871 churches and to rebuild or enlarge 7491, thereby providing more than 2.000,000 additional seats. The report contains evidence of the work dojie during the year in conserving ancient parish churches. An appeal is made for funds to enable the society to deal more generously with increasing appeals; for help. . .