Church built in 1870s is ‘99% likely to shut’

High Kirk on Dundee Law is “99% likely” to close. Dundee Presbytery clerk the Rev James Wilson confirmed that the church has balloted its members on whether or not it should shut for good.

He said it was “likely to be the case”, with dwindling membership numbers being the cause.

Officially known as St David’s High Kirk, the Gothic church sits on Kinghorne Road on the slopes of the Law.

Its prominence is further heightened by being raised above street level, with a flight of steps leading to the front door which faces south over the city.

When first built in the late 1870s it was close to the mouth of the tunnel carved through the Law as part of the Dundee and Newtyle Railway.

Mr Wilson said: “A lot of businesses have indicated how terrible Covid-19 has been for them and have blamed Covid-19 for all their ills. But for many of them, they were struggling already.

“In terms of the church, the General Assembly report that has come out indicated that Dundee Presbytery will see a reduction.

“That’s nothing to do with Covid. That’s been coming for years, 30 years at least.

“The broader picture is one that counts against the church anyway.

“The population is also ageing, and the last two generations have not been as interested in the Church as we would have liked.”

National Records of Scotland figures show there were 49,863 births registered across the country in 2019, down 1,445 on the previous year.

It was the lowest figure since 1855.

And papers prepared for the Church of Scotland’s General Assembly last year showed congregations across Scotland were dropping by around 4% a year.

Mr Wilson continued: “There’s been a long-term decline, which we’ve tried to manage, but not very well. The loss of membership is a big one.

“We’re down to 302,000 members of the Church of Scotland. We were one million members around 30 years ago.

“I’m 99% sure that High Kirk will no longer be used for worship, beyond decommissioning.

“But its future is not in worship.”

GOING SOON: The Rev James Wilson has said the news of High Kirk’s potential closure has been coming for at least 30 years.

The church was first built almost 150 years ago.