CONGREGATIONS from three Great Harwood churches are set to come together to worship under the same roof.

St John's Church, St Hubert's Road, has already been declared redundant by the Church of England and there is a possibility that Orchard Street Methodist Church and the United Reformed Church, in Barnmeadow Lane, will also be closed.

However, a partnership has been formed between the three churches, which will see congregations joining together to worship in a new building.

The Rev Geoff Walker, superintendent minister of Great Harwood Methodist Church and chairman of the Local Ecumenical Partnership (LEP), said: "I can attempt to avoid conjecture, rumour and gossip by saying that at the present time no decisions whatsoever have been made about the location of the new building.

"Neither have they been made about whether it will be a single congregation all worshipping together, or whether they will worship as separate denominations. That is all still to be decided.

"However, it is strongly felt that the new building should not be designed exclusively as a church, but should attempt to provide facilities to meet the social and spiritual needs of the whole community, irrespective of faith."

Mr Walker said that the idea was still in the early planning stages.

He added that there was still confusion over whether St John's Church would be declared a listed building, although he said it looked doubtful this would happen