The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Bombshell as ‘cradle of Reformation’ set to close
St Andrews ‘toun kirk’ declared ‘surplus to requirements’ by Church of Scotland
One of the most important Presbyterian places of worship in Scotland is likely to close within two to five years after being declared “surplus to requirements”, The Courier can reveal.
Kirk session and members of Holy Trinity Church in St Andrews were delivered the bombshell news about the “toun kirk” – regarded as the “cradle of the Reformation” – when Church of Scotland buildings committee members from Edinburgh visited with local interim moderator, John Duncan of St Athernase Church, Leuchars.
Rumours of the potential closure of the church in the centre of St Andrews have been circulating for years amid falling numbers of worshippers.
However, first definitive news of the Kirk’s conclusions came last month, with a follow-up meeting of the kirk session last week giving the public a chance to question the decision for the first time.
It is understood there is an appeals process, but a Holy Trinity source told The Courier that, because the Kirk will not permit the upgrading of the toilets, there seems “little hope of a reprieve”.
Closure could be in as little as two years and within a maximum of five.
A prominent Holy Trinity churchgoer told The Courier: “I don’t have to tell you about the sorry history of Church of Scotland closures and ‘redevelopments’ in recent years, but given the Kirk’s unerring ability to pluck catastrophe from the jaws of difficulty the plan to close the church where John Knox preached his first public sermon of the Reformation in 1547 is surely a PR disaster in the making.”
Kirk authorities have refused to allow Holy Trinity to upgrade its toilets to modern standards with the likes of disabled access, despite the fact that the congregation is prepared to pay for the upgrading from its own coffers, a source said.
They added: “Now the Kirk quotes lack of upgraded toilets as one of the reasons Holy Trinity is redundant to requirements, rather than say Hope Park or St Leonards.
“Equally bizarrely, the experts from Kirk HQ in George Street claim that if the A-listed building goes on the open market there can be no clauses allowing regular worship to continue in any part of the church.
“In other words, the efforts of the congregation to find other uses for the church while allowing part of it still to be used for worship are apparently illegal.
“This is a massive kick in the teeth for a group of senior elders who have travelled throughout Scotland looking at how other churches have continued to function, albeit in reduced circumstances.”
A Church of Scotland spokesperson said: “As part of the ongoing presbytery reform plans, the Church of Scotland’s general trustees made the decision that in the long term the Holy Trinity Church building in St Andrews would no longer be required.
“The congregation of Holy Trinity Church in St Andrews were made aware of this decision on Sunday February 16.
“The kirk session are currently in discussion as to whether to pursue transition ministry in an interim period, which would mean the building would be retained for worship use for up to five years, and may make a decision at the next kirk session meeting on Tuesday March 31.”
“If the kirk session does not agree to a period of transition ministry, the Presbytery of St Andrews will decide whether to form a union or dissolution.”