St. Mary's R.C. Church, Littleborough and
St. Patrick's R.C. Church, Rochdale
The Parish of Pope Saint John XXIII
St. Mary's R.C. Church, Littleborough and St. Patrick's R.C. Church, Rochdale
Get involved at St. Patrick's
Union of Catholic Mothers (UCM)
The Union of Catholic Mothers is a national organisation of Catholic women with a commitment to family and faith. The members meet regularly in parish foundations to share friendship and fun while supporting their home parish. Parish foundations are supported by the diocesan group which is is in turn part of the National network.
Here at St. Patrick’s our present foundation is 28 years old and meets every two weeks, following mass, on Thursday evenings. We see our ministry as one of hospitality: members enjoy welcoming parishioners and visitors to Sunday masses and to all our special events and they
provide refreshment at most social events allowing relaxed interaction between attendees.
The group supports all parish events and regular Coffee Mornings along with Christmas and Easter Hamper raffles allow us to make charitable donations to local, national and international charities. Many of these groups work to support disadvantaged families and children.
Like any group, we also enjoy socialising together with celebrations of special anniversaries in the Parish House, meals out or whole day trips.
Any new members are always very welcome to our twenty strong group of committed women.
St. Vincent de Paul Society (SVP)
St Mary’s and St Patrick's SVP are an amalgamated group providing both practical and financial help to our communities. We visit the sick, lonely, bereaved or families new to the area. We also offer help in emergency situations.
If you would like to get involved, speak to Bridie McCabe who is our group leader.
Pastoral Care Group (PCG)
The Pastoral Care group currently serves three main areas of the parish within our care.
Our primary area of care is for the youth of the parish. We often run youth events which children aged 9 years or above are invited to attend, such as games nights, movie nights or trips to local sporting venues such as bowling.
Once a year we also host a parish New Year’s meal for the over 70’s, serving a delicious three course meal alongside some fabulous musical entertainment. Finally, we are always willing to offer a helpful hand and support larger parish events, run by other parish groups. Here, we work alongside parishioners in setting up and running events such as coffee and cake mornings, parish fundraisers and special masses.
Finance Committee
The Finance Committee meets quarterly, to advise and support Fr. Robert on the parish finances. The committee comprises Fr. Robert, Kate and six additional members.
We receives quarterly finance updates, prepared by the Parish Secretary and publish an annual financial report for the parish. We are also required to submit annual financial statement to the diocese, on which annual gift aid tax return to parish is calculated.
The committee also oversees income generation. There was to have been a financial appeal to the Parish in March 2020, a couple of weeks after lockdown started. We also manage expenditure, including Joseph suite in St. Patrick's School. In conjunction with the Men's group we plan all the development and maintenance of the church, of which there have recently been considerable amounts, meaning expenditure has far exceeded income in the last 12 months.
Gift Shop
The Gift Shop was started in 1981 in response to requests for memorabilia re St John Paul's Papal visit to Manchester.
It was initially set up in the Narthex until Father Joe had the Baptistery converted into the present day shop in 1994. The shop is run by volunteers on a rota system and is open every Sunday. The shop provides a valuable service to the people of the parish and its many visitors. All the profits raised are donated to the parish.
Over the years the annual average is £1,000. Additional volunteers would be most welcome. If you would like to become a volunteer please speak to Irene Turner, (organiser), one of the other volunteers or the parish secretary. Becoming a volunteer enables you to contribute to maintaining the gift shop service and to getting to know more parishioners.