WHEN Pennington's newest curate arrived in Leigh on a dark evening in April he wasn't too impressed.

Five months on and Christ Church's Reverend Evan Cockshaw and his family have grown to love the town.

Writing in the parish magazine he says: "Try as we might to be non-judgemental we can't help but make immediate decisions on the way things look.

"When I first saw Leigh I thought 'Oh, well I'm not coming here for the scenery'."

Two weeks later, when he and wife Hilary and their two young sons got to worship in the church, they fell in love with the place.

Now they are amazed at anyone who has a bad word to say about the town.

He said: "In church we saw people of all ages joining together. It was fantastic. Many churches do not have the life and joy that Christ Church has. We have been shown great love, fellowship and friendship.

"Our first impression has grown into what I believe will be a lasting love for this place and this church."

This week southerner Mr Cockshaw said: "I came from a picturesque market town in Lincolnshire which was surrounded by miles of countryside.

"When I first drove from Bolton through Atherton and Leigh town centres it struck me it was not the prettiest site. There was a very sharp contrast with Lincolnshire, but now we think Leigh is great."