St Thomas, Werneth

The Bishop of Manchester, the Right Revd. Nigel McCulloch visited the parish of St Thomas', Werneth, on  21 February 2008.
The bishop went straight to Saint Thomas's Church of England Primary School, where he met governing body members and teaching staff from Christian, Muslim and other faith backgrounds. 
St Thomas's has a 95% intake of Muslim pupils of Asian heritage: the residents of the parish represent a wide ethnic diversity: one third are Pakistani in origin, one third Bangladeshi and one third from the British Isles.
After a short Pilgrimage Act of Worship for those unable to be present later in the evening, the bishop visited Barbara Hogg, branch leader of St Thomas's Mothers' Union, recovering from a recent period of illness, together with Mrs Barbara Duxbury, both of whom are assistants at Holy Communion.
The bishop also visited influential  community activists, Norman and Alma Flint to hear about their work over many years for the local community. 
A community reception in the School Hall was hosted by church members for those who live and work in the community of The Coppice. Guests included Shashi Mohandas, Oldham MBC Area Manager for West Oldham; Dr Sharif Salim, EO of Coppice Community Centre and headteachers representing Oldham Hulme Grammar Schools; Oldham Sixth Form College; Werneth Junior School and Hulme Kindergarten.
The bishop led a Pilgrimage Service, at Saint Thomas's, which included an opportunity for those who wished to be anointed with oil as a sign of their recommissioning. Peter Waters, a member of the church choir for over 70 years, told the story of the church, together with Nasreen

Photos from this Run the race Bishop's pilgrimage

Masih, one of the church's younger adults.
Returning the Commonwealth Games baton to the Bishop at the end of the service were Annie Allbrow, Najem Yakub, and Eleanor Shaw (8),  representing the wide age-range of the congregation.
Priest-in-charge, The Revd Andrew Dawson said, 'Church members were encouraged by meeting Bishop Nigel. It has helped us to see ourselves together as Running the Race alongside him.'



He continued, 'At St Thomas's, we seek, alongside many other  agencies, to work together for the good of all; Bishop Nigel encouraged us and our other guests who also live and work on the Coppice. That twenty-three representatives of local organisations were present at the community reception indicates how much they value both the Diocese and the parish church.'