History of the Church of The Holy Spirit, Fetcham
The first recorded Mass in Fetcham since the Reformation took place in a private house on Lower Road in April 1941. The Mass continued to be celebrated in private houses until 1953 when Fetcham Village Hall became the Sunday Mass Centre. In 1960 Fr Albert Hadshar, Parish Priest of Leatherhead, purchased Bell Cottage in Bell Lane, site of the present church. Later he also purchased St Mary's Lodge which was to become the Presbytery.
The Holy Spirit Church, Fetcham was built in 1968 and dedicated by Bishop David Cashman, the first Bishop of the Diocese of Arundel & Brighton, on the 25 October 1968. Its parish boundaries covered an area which had previously been served by part of the parishes of Our Lady and St Peter, Leatherhead and Our Lady of Sorrows, Effingham. The first parish priest was Father Thomas Purcell who had previously been a curate at Leatherhead.
Less than twenty years later, during the evening of Ash Wednesday 1987, a disastrous fire broke out in the church, causing massive internal damage and rendering the church unusable for a prolonged period. The fire was apparently caused by a faulty central heating boiler but fortunately the main structure of the building was not seriously damaged and much of the renovation cost was covered by insurance and a special collection from parishioners.
Immediately after the fire the rector and parishioners of St Mary’s Anglican church (located close by on the other side of Lower Road) offered the use of their church for the main Sunday morning Mass, even going so far as to re-schedule their own services to accommodate this. This arrangement worked well and helped to establish very good relations between the two church communities to this day.
Over this period the parish also started to cooperate with the parish of Our Lady of Sorrows, particularly in the area of catechesis for the young, and so it was that in 2012 Bishop Kieran announced that the two parishes were to be conjoined with Fr John Inglis as Parish Priest.
In 2015 the church hall at Fetcham was declared unsafe and had to be demolished. A new annex to the church was then built which was opened by Bishop Richard Moth on 1st October 2015.
The Holy Spirit Church, Fetcham was built in 1968 and dedicated by Bishop David Cashman, the first Bishop of the Diocese of Arundel & Brighton, on the 25 October 1968. Its parish boundaries covered an area which had previously been served by part of the parishes of Our Lady and St Peter, Leatherhead and Our Lady of Sorrows, Effingham. The first parish priest was Father Thomas Purcell who had previously been a curate at Leatherhead.
Less than twenty years later, during the evening of Ash Wednesday 1987, a disastrous fire broke out in the church, causing massive internal damage and rendering the church unusable for a prolonged period. The fire was apparently caused by a faulty central heating boiler but fortunately the main structure of the building was not seriously damaged and much of the renovation cost was covered by insurance and a special collection from parishioners.
Immediately after the fire the rector and parishioners of St Mary’s Anglican church (located close by on the other side of Lower Road) offered the use of their church for the main Sunday morning Mass, even going so far as to re-schedule their own services to accommodate this. This arrangement worked well and helped to establish very good relations between the two church communities to this day.
Over this period the parish also started to cooperate with the parish of Our Lady of Sorrows, particularly in the area of catechesis for the young, and so it was that in 2012 Bishop Kieran announced that the two parishes were to be conjoined with Fr John Inglis as Parish Priest.
In 2015 the church hall at Fetcham was declared unsafe and had to be demolished. A new annex to the church was then built which was opened by Bishop Richard Moth on 1st October 2015.
