Services
Sunday
8am: Holy Communion (Book of Common Prayer)
A quiet, reflective start to the day
11am: Holy Communion (Book of Common Prayer on the 1st and 3rd Sunday of the month,
Common Worship on the others)
With choir and organ.
4pm: Evening Prayer (Book of Common Prayer)
A spoken service
Tuesday & Thursday
12.15pm: Holy Communion
(Common Worship)
children & Families
Sunday Family Worship
Our Sunday Family Worship meets in the Hall on Sunday from 9.15am and is aimed at Children and Families.
Services are led by clergy and include interactive elements alongside our worship time together. Parent and Grandparent helpers form part of our team too.
The Roots programme is followed which links to the Sunday Readings.
Families take part in worship, listen to stories and pray together, and enjoy crafts, playing games and other activities.
We also take part in projects such as the Shoebox Appeal and raising money for Christian Aid.
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Life Events
Bolton Parish Church is able to offer Church of England life event services. Churches are special places and there are some things about a baptism for your little one or church wedding that you just can’t get anywhere else.
Please come and see us at the Parish Church on any Sunday between 12.15 and 13.00 when someone will be able to talk to you about your wedding or baptism plans or alternatively you can submit your details here and someone will get back to you.
We are always happy to hold funeral services at the Parish Church – a place where we hope and pray you will find a sense of peace.
In the first instance following the death of a loved one, you should contact a funeral director who will then be in touch with us on your behalf in order to begin making funeral arrangements.
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Choir
Music lies at the very heart of our worship, and Bolton Parish Church Choir has an adult four part choir which rehearses on a Thursday evening from 7-8.30pm, and sings at the weekly Parish Eucharist, Choral Evensong on the 4th Sunday of the month, and on festival and other occasions. It has a wide repertoire, including both traditional and contemporary compositions. Highlights of the year are the Advent and Christmas Carol Services, and an annual choir trip to sing evensong in a Cathedral setting.
Emphasis on excellent music has led the Parochial Church Council to invest in the post of Director of Music over many years. We also offer choral and organ scholarships (see below).
For those wanting to come and see if they would like to join us, please either turn up on a Thursday evening, or email Philip O’Connor using the button below.
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Scholarships
The Choral Scholarships, which pay £1000 per annum and are tenable for up to three years, are a perfect opportunity for musicians aged 18-27 to develop their singing skills, receive vocal tuition, and perform a wide range of repertoire in a superb setting. If you fall outside of the age range but are still interested in being a Choral Scholar, then please do get in touch.
The Organ Scholarships, which pay £1000 per annum, are a perfect opportunity for young musicians to develop their Organ playing skills which includes hymn playing, accompanying the choir, playing the Mass setting and voluntaries in a superb setting.
The Choral and Organ Scholars sing and play mainly during academic term-time, but with additional commitments at Christmas and Easter. There is also the opportunity to perform as part of the Tuesday Lunchtime Recital Series as well as tailoring the Scholarship to the individual needs.
Email Philip O’Connor using the button below.
email us
Organ
The church is fortunate in possessing a fine organ, of three manuals and pedals, which has a fascinating history. In 1795, Samuel Green of London built an instrument for the old church, and this was then enlarged by the firm of Gray and Davison in 1852. This organ was transferred to the new church, but was found to be inadequate, so the firm of William Hill and Sons built an enlarged organ, containing much of the old pipework, in 1882. It was at this stage that the spectacular North transept case was installed – the work of Arthur Hill, DLitt, FSA, grandson of the firm’s founder. Since then the organ has been subject to various alterations (by Hill, Norman and Beard in 1953, and later by Pendlebury’s of Cleveleys); also, a mobile console was introduced, so that the player might better hear the balance of voices within the instrument.
The latest incarnation of the organ is the work of Geoffrey Coffin of Principal Pipe Organs of York, who carried out a thorough overhaul and rebuild of the organ during 2008 and into 2009. Opening recitals were given in March 2009, by Stephen Carleston (Director of Music), and in April by David Titterington (Head of Organ Studies at the Royal Academy of Music).
For anyone requiring additional details about the organ, you are referred to the excellent booklet “The Organs of Bolton Parish Church” by Geoffrey Dowling; details are also available on the British Institute of Organ Studies website (ref. St. Peter, Churchgate, Bolton, E01477)
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