Our History

The Parish Church of St Matthew, Chadderton - Grade II Listed

Location: Corner of Burnley Lane, Chadderton Hall Road and Mill Brow

The Parish of St Matthew, Chadderton was formed in 1844. Prior to the present building there was a small wooden chapel erected in 1845, to meet the spiritual needs of the parish, whilst the present building was constructed. Work by E H Shellard began in 1847 and the church in its original form was completed and consecrated in 1857. Although the parish at that time was geographically large the number of dwellings was not. However, over the years more housing was built and the parish was divided to form the parishes of St Mark, Chadderton; St Luke, Chadderton; St Gabriel, Middleton Junction; St Anne, Royton; and St Matthew, Chadderton. Part of the parish was also annexed to the parish of St Leonard, Middleton.

The current parish has about 2,500 dwellings with a population of 9,503 souls according to the 2021 census. Much of the parish is made up of semi-detached housing, with some houses being detached and some terraced. Whilst the area in general can be described as sub-urban, there are pockets of rural land which is farmed and areas of greenbelt. The parish has various ages of housing (most of which is privately owned) some 19th Century, some pre-war and post-war, as well as a 1970s estate and some local authority housing. Around the parish a small retail park and various local shops are situated.

We are blessed to have several schools in the parish: St Matthew's Church of England Primary School, situated next door to church and accross the road; North Chadderton School, also opposite; St Luke's Church of England Primary School located in what was the parish of St Luke, Chadderton; The Radclyffe School to the south of the parish; and an independent Preparatory School at the in the north east of the parish.

The church, with its tower added in 1881, is a local landmark being visible from Chadderton Hall Road and the immediate surrounding area; however, as the tower is not very tall the church is obscured by other buildings and trees beyond this.

The church grounds are extensive, running from Mill Brow down to Chadderton Fold. Much of this is consecrated graveyard, although the extension, a large field to the north of the section currently being used as graveyard space, is rented to St Matthew’s Primary School as a playing field. A section of the graveyard has been set aside for the interment of cremated remains, but because it has now reached capacity, a Garden of Remembrance has recently been developed where ashes can be interred and the names of the deceased engraved on a central monument. The graveyard is a beautiful community space that is often visited by local residents.

The church itself is built of Hammer-dressed stone with a slate roof. The original building has had various additions over the years. The three-stage tower with clasping buttresses has an arched door, small lancet openings and a squat spire which sits behind corner pinnacles (and accommodates the belfry with just the one tolling bell) with gabled two-light openings was added in 1881 towards the south west corner of the church. In the early 1970s the flat roofed extensions were added. One at the west end and north west corner of the original church to create a new entrance, narthex and choir vestry, the other at the north east corner to provide a vicar’s vestry. The main and original part of the church consists of a four-bay nave with projecting plinth and gableted buttresses (two on each side), and each bay has a two-light window with reticulated tracery; and chancel, which has two-bays with cusped lancet windows.

The original main door to the church has been dispensed with and filled in with stone work; the church is now accessed via the Narthex, completed 1972. As well as being a good space for meeting and greeting people before a service and serving refreshments afterwards, the Narthex houses two toilets and provides access to the choir vestry.

Although the exterior suggests a typical 19th Century country church, the interior, whilst keeping its traditional features, has a light, modern and intimate feel. This has been achieved through several re-orderings of the church. The first in 1986 after a fire that damaged much of the plaster work, pews and organ. The oak pews were salvageable, and therefore restored. The original pipe organ could not be salvaged and was replaced by an electronic two-manual organ built by Makin.

The second re-ordering in 2016 was a major undertaking. The choir stalls were moved back to their rightful place in the 'wagon' roofed chancel and the eagle was moved back to the north-east end of the nave. The dated pine pews were replaced with a combination of upholstered stained ash pews and chairs making the nave to be a versatile space for the various activities of the church and to be let out to the local community. The organ was moved back to its original position in the chancel and a new custom Viscount Envoy 33 Series was commissioned which, after being installed during Holy Week in 2018, was a fine addition to the church.

The nave is accessed via modern fire resistant doors underneath the west gallery. At the front of the nave, on the west facing walls, are two plaques, listing the Ten Commandments. The wardens' staffs, made of thin oak shafts, one with a mitre, and the other with a crown, both cast from brass, are by the entrance to the nave of the church.

The choir vestry and narthex were both upgraded and modernised with the walls throughout re-decorated in cream and the east wall in green. The bottom third of the east wall still retains its moulded white decorative arches on columns. The window arches were also re-painted grey to complement the overall asthetic of the church. On the north wall of the chancel there still remains a monument to commemorate the Revd James Dunn, the first and youngest incumbent of the parish, who died in 1869.

There are six stained glass windows in the nave and three in the chancel, some by Kempe and Tower, others by F Comere and Capronnier and the windows are fine examples of their work. The west window is of simple geometric shaped coloured glass, as are the windows in the Narthex. The most recent window is installed in the Narthex and was commissioned in memory of Anne Hemmingway Lord. Anne was a dedicated, faithful servant of God and long-standing parishoner of St Matthew's Church.

At the west end of the nave there is a gallery with blind arcaded parapet on cast-iron columns which can be accessed via the narthex, adjacent to the tower. When the original pipe organ was replaced space became available to the north of the chancel of a side chapel. Its main function is that of a quiet area of church, accessible directly via a door to the graveyard if needed.