St Benedict's Church, Warrington

St Benedict's Church is an active Roman Catholic church in the Orford suburb of Warrington, Cheshire, England. The parish was founded by Benedictine monks from Ampleforth Abbey. However, it is now served by clergy from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Liverpool.HistoryA school was established on the 10th January 1881 and Mass was said in the school building. Fr. Wilfred Baines O.S.B was given charge of the district 1986 but lived at St Mary's. However, on the 8th March 1902 St. Benedict's became a separate parish from St Mary's Church, Warrington and it became the third Benedictine parish in Warrington: the others being St Alban's Church, Warrington (1755) and St Mary's Church, Warrington (1877). Fr Baines moved to a cottage next to the school in 1902. In 1904 a tin mission church was built in the school playground and was opened on the 19th June 1904.Fr Oswald Swarbreck OSB became the Rector in 1907 following the departure of Fr Baines. During his tenure a new priory (presbytery) was built on Rhodes Street which was completed on 11 January 1912 at a cost of £1,557. This was then followed by a new church which was formally opened on 11 July 1915 by Cardinal Bourne, the Archbishop of Westminster.