A Grade-II listed church in Blackpool which is a prominent landmark in the town will be re-purposed as a mental health therapy centre, if ambitious plans are approved.
The distinctive Thanksgiving Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes, on Whinney Heys Road near Blackpool Victoria Hospital, has been empty for around 25 years.
But proposals are being developed to physically link the church to neighbouring Cygnet Newton House at 183 Newton Drive, a 21-bed specialist high-support inpatient rehabilitation service for men (aged 18+) with complex and enduring mental health issues.
The project will also entail the restoration of the church, which has been owned for many years owned by the Historic Chapels Trust but is set to change hands.
A full planning application has been lodged with Blackpool Council this week seeking permission for the erection of a two-storey front and side extension to Cygnet Newton House to provide a total of 35 bedrooms, and the erection of a single storey rear infill extension and provision of additional vehicle and cycle parking.
It also includes the construction of a single storey link extension between Cygnet Newton House and the Shrine Church, as well as the creation of a car park at the front of the Shrine and installation of an access ramp and secure gate.
A Design and Access Statement has been provided by architects and heritage consultants Butress, on behalf of special mental health service providers, Cygnet.
What the statement says
It states: “Buttress has been appointed to develop a scheme that creates a therapy centre using the internal spaces within the Shrine Church, as well as a secure link between the Church and Newton House.
“ The design approach prioritises heritage preservation, whilst introducing contemporary interventions that respect the building’s architectural significance and provide functional spaces for provision of mental health services.
“It will balance modern operational needs with conservation, retaining scale and character.
“The Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes is owned by the Historic Chapels Trust (HCT), though with the HCT closing operations, the Shrine is going to come under new ownership.
”The proposal for Cygnet to take ownership of the Shrine and to use it in conjunction with the adjoining Newton House is underway .”
The extension to Newton House primarily focuses on improving and expanding the current facilities in the form of a 2-storey building to the North West of the site in-keeping with the character and architecture of the main house.
About the Shrine Church
The Blackpool Shrine Church was built between 1955 and 1957to a design by F. X. Velarde.
During the Second World War Bishop Thomas E. Flynn, the bishop of theRoman Catholic Diocese of Lancaster, prayed to ur Lady of Lourdes, the patron saint of the diocese, to protect the diocese from war damage.
By the end of the war, Blackpool escaped relatively unscathed, and the bishop then had the idea of building a thanksgiving chapel to commemorate this.
It cost £50,000 (equivalent to £1,520,000 in 2023), and many of the parishes in the diocese made a subscription.
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