Ramsbottom Evangelical Church is a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

Reformed Reform is beneficial change. Reform, reformed or reforming may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine Places * Reform, Al ...

, church situated in the town of

Ramsbottom Ramsbottom is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. The population at the 2011 census was 17,872. Historically in Lancashire, it lies on the River Irwell in the West Pennine Moors, north-west of Bur ...

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

, England, now known as Trinity Grace Church. The church was a member of the

Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches The Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC) is a network of 661 independent evangelical churches in the United Kingdom. FIEC exists to help "Independent churches work together to reach Britain for Christ". Governance The FIEC st ...

, but left in 2018. Trinity Grace Church is now a member of the Association of Confessional Baptist Churches (ACBC) UK, having adopted the Second London Baptist Confession of 1677/89 as its doctrinal standard and seeking to be confessional in its church polity. Close ties have been established with many churches in the region including Trinity Baptist Church Charlesworth and Bethany Evangelical Church in Leigh. It is also involved in active

evangelism Evangelism, or witnessing, is the act of sharing the Christian gospel, the message and teachings of Jesus Christ. It is typically done with the intention of converting others to Christianity. Evangelism can take several forms, such as persona ...

outreach in the town, including

street preaching Open-air preaching, street preaching, or public preaching is the act of evangelizing a religious Religion is a range of social- cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctif ...

, door-to-door ministry, a 'Thursday Club' for youngsters, and courses for all ages. The church is also committed to the work of overseas missions and has strong connections with Kenya, Nigeria and Poland.

Church History

The beginnings of Ramsbottom

Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

Church go back to

Summerseat Summerseat is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England; it is sited directly south of Ramsbottom. History The 200-year-old Joshua Hoyles' cotton mill, a Grade II listed building, on the banks of the River Ir ...

in the late 1950s when the

Primitive Methodist Church The Primitive Methodist Church is a Christian denomination within the holiness movement. Originating in early 19th-century England as a Christian revival, revivalist movement within Methodism, it was heavily influenced by American evangelist Loren ...

invited Rev. Raymond Gregory, minister of Dundee Lane Congregational Church to minister to them. The Primitive Methodist building became unsafe due to river erosion and for a period of time the church held their meetings in a car garage on Robin Road. 1961 marked a turning point in the life of the Evangelical Church when younger men were invited to attend a

Billy Graham William Franklin Graham Jr. (; November 7, 1918 – February 21, 2018) was an American Evangelism, evangelist, ordained Southern Baptist minister, and Civil rights movement, civil rights advocate, whose broadcasts and world tours featuring liv ...

crusade which resulted in a cross pollination of religious ideals from the United States with those of 1960's England. Later the church moved to the Summerseat Liberal Club and in 1963 to the Summerseat Co-op on a ten-year lease. When the lease on the Co-op building ran out, in 1973, the leaseholders would not re-new the contract. After that the church met in private homes until 1976 when it moved to its present location. In 1998 Rev. Raymond Gregory retired and was replaced as Minister by Oliver Allmand-Smith. Since that time Tony Flanders and Rob Stredder have also been called to the ministry in the church. There have been several phases of expansion to the building which is located next to the level crossing in the centre of the town.{{Citation needed, date=May 2025

External links

Old Church Website
20th-century Methodist church buildings Ramsbottom
Current Website