Thornhill Parish Church

Serving the local community

 Whitley Lower Parish Church

                    Dedicated to St Mary and St Michael and situated in the delightful village of    Whitley.  It is part of the United Benefice of Thornhill and Whitley.

                          Whitley Parish Church1

            **As you are aware, due to Corona virus restrictions, we are not permitted to open the church at the moment. 

The information below gives you details of weekly activities in the church that will recommence as soon as Archbishop and Government advice allows**

Covid 19 Church re-opening for Priavte Prayer

 When you come into church, there is a hand sanitiser there which everyone must use, please, and a sign reminding everyone about the 2 metre distance between people. As you go into church, there is a plate on your left if anyone wants to leave some collection to help with the normal running costs of the church.
Next you will see there are green ticks on some seats and red circles with a line across on others. If you use the seats with the green ticks. you will be at a safe distance from the next green tick!  We have put a few green ticks together for two people from the same household to use.  If anyone comes with their family of more than two, we ask them to go in the chancel where it is possible to keep away from other households.
We can't use hymn books - indeed we can't sing because that might spread the virus more. We can't leave the prayer sheets out although if you print them out yourself, you can bring them with you as long as you take them away also.
If anyone needs the toilet, there are disposable cloths and cleaning fluid on the shelf as you go in. Please clean the surfaces after you have used them and put the cloth in the bin.
We can't have anyone at the front speaking and guiding prayers - it is just for private prayer, but nevertheless it will be lovely to see the church again and feel the peace and God's presence there.
When you leave, it must be by the door in the chancel.  There is an arrow pointing right out of the door. Before you go through, please use the hand sanitiser there.  Take care when leaving as there are six steps but there is a secure hand rail.
Unless the R rate suddenly rises, we are planning to open church next Sunday, 28th from 10-30 am until 12-30 pm and look forward to seeing anyone who wants to come, then.
However, please don't feel any pressure to come - if you feel unsure, stay at home for a while. This is that you can come, not that you should come.
I will send the sheets as usual and whether we see you or not, God Bless everyone.
Marjorie

PS If you've any questions you can email or my phone number is 01924 499833.

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     Join us for Parish Eucharist on   Sundays at 11.15am

We meet for Pebble Prayers every Thursday at 10am 

and Whitley Church is open every Thursday and Saturday 

10am-4pm*

 Please come in and see this peaceful and beautiful building

Rector  -  Revd Debbie Nash

Debbie at induction
Please contact her at 01924 450746
or by email click here

Find out more about Whitley Church here

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Coming Soon to Whitley

The Christmas Tree will be lit on Whitley Village Green on Monday 25th November at 5.45. Come along for carols and mince pies

On Friday 13th December come along to a pantomime at Whitley Community Centre. All details can be found here or phone Marjorie Wheelhouse for details

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More News and Events for Whitley are included in the Pew Sheet and 

feature on the What's on Page in the main section of the site

For full details of services and events in the Benefice please check the News Calendar and Services page

click here

 Churchwardens at Whitley

                         Marjorie Wheelhouse 01924 499833 and Heather Fielden 01924491104 

Whitley Parish Church 2

view of interior showing new toilets and entry lobby at top right

Whitley Parish Church 3

view of interior showing restored East end**

Safeguarding of Children and Vulnerable Adults

We take this issue really seriously and our policies, approved  by the Church of England and our Diocese, are designed to underpin this.

Our church safeguarding officers are Helen Armitage. 01924461831 for Thornhill and Heather Fielden 01924 491104 for Whitley

Please find Church of England policy for safeguarding here and more information from the Diocese of Leeds safeguarding can be found here 

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If there are immediate serious concerns about the safety of a child or 
Adult you should contact the Kirklees Safeguarding Team

KIRKLEES : Child day 01484 456848 OUt of hours  01484 414933
  Adult Day  01484 221000  Out of hours 01484 414933
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 News Archive

                                 mac

Whitley Parish Church Saturday 7th September 10-12 Join us for our fabulous MacMillan coffee morning. We'll be serving lashings of tea, buckets of coffee, crispy crumpets, marvellous muffins and heavenly home-made cakes, all with the Whitley Welcome! 

                                                    tea

Come along to Whitley Church on Saturday 17th August 2-4pm for afternoon tea. With a delicious selection of savoury and sweet food available
Donations of £5 per person or £20 a family are welcome or feel free to be as generous as you can to help the upkeep of this beautiful church.
See more here

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Harvest at Whitley September 23rd 2018

Whitley enjoyed their Harvest service   These photos show some of the lovely floral displays decorating the beautiful church for this special day

harv2017   harv2017

harv 2017

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One of the highlights of the calendar at Whitley is our Christingle service held on Christmas Eve at 4.00 p.m. 

We are often very lucky to welcome Jeremiah the donkey along  with Mary, Joseph and the angel Gabriel 

(with the help of our enthusiastic volunteers) into church this year

2016                      2016

The Local Area

With a population just below 500, the parish of Whitley Lower is set around the two villages of Briestfield and Whitley bordering the larger parish of Thornhill. It is mainly a rural farming area with little industry or commerce except a haulage depot near the church and an Ice Cream Parlour.  The local pub in Whitley - the Woolpack is thriving and serves excellent food and drink.. There are no shops in either community which means travelling at least 5 miles for major shopping. Whitley has an hourly bus connection to Thornhill, Dewsbury and Wakefield, but there is no service for Briestfield.

Whitley and Briestfield formed a part of the ancient parish of Thornhill and became a parish in its own right in 1847, with the building of St Mary and St Michael’s.