Grade Two listed church could be demolished

Providence United Reformed Church

The Grade Two listed former Providence United Reformed Church on Market Place, Middleton could be demolished.

An application has been put into Rochdale Council by the owner to have the building demolished and the site cleared.

The church was once a bustling church with around 250 parishioners, as well as a busy school in the Victorian and Edwardian era.

The building fell into disrepair after the congregation moved to smaller premises on Manchester New Road in 1965, due to dwindling numbers.

In 2006, it was hoped that the church building could be saved when planning permission to convert it into 12 apartments was approved. However, work never started on the development and the planning consent later lapsed.

In 2013, part of the roof collapsed.

Mark Robinson, Head of Planning at Rochdale Council, said: “Providence Chapel has been falling into a state of disrepair since it was vacated in the early 1990s and the council has worked with the owners since then to try and help them halt this decline and bring the building back into use.

“Unfortunately a succession of different owners was not able to make the building viable. Late last year, around 70 per cent of the building had to be demolished for safety reasons following a fire and what remains is beyond repair. 

“The council has now received an application to demolish the remaining structure and will make a decision on this in due course after taking advice from relevant bodies including Historic England.”