St Luke
Holbeck, Yorkshire
A mile to the south of Leeds city centre our beautiful Victorian building sits at the heart of the Beeston Hill Community.
This Victorian Gothic Grade II listed church was built in 1830 with present chancel and vestry added in 1885. There is a tower to the west of the building with a broach spire and internally there is a balcony to the west end. Since 2000 there has been significant re-ordering of the interior with the removal of pews and choir stalls, the font moved to the south side of the nave, and a nave dais and altar created with carpeting throughout.
The church building has been changed and adapted over the years to meet the needs of the congregation and the community it serves. As a result, the building today has significantly changed from the original church. There have been two major reordering's and many more minor changes along the way.
The first major reordering took place in the mid-1880s and the church was reopened on 14 September 1885. The side galleries and box pews were removed; ‘more comfortable’ bench pews installed; the chancel area and the vestries added with the new east window. The organ was moved from the west gallery to the new chancel area and gas lighting installed for the first time.
The second major reordering of the church took place in 2005 - the pews were removed and replaced with comfortable chairs, a solid floor constructed, new areas of York stone floor and carpeting added, a new platform made to the front of the nave and the font moved to the south side of the nave. This makes the church building an attractive and flexible worship space that can also be used by local community groups and as a venue for concerts.
The chancel was reordered in 2010, when the choir pews were removed, the floor made good, and the area carpeted. The chancel can be used as a small worship space or a quiet space for prayer. A recent upgrade of the heating system makes the building warmer and facilitates an environment of being welcoming to all who come and use the building.
In recent years the congregation has moved towards a more modern and accessible style of worship with great use of audio-visual equipment. The current congregation continues to consider what is needed to ensure facilities are appropriate for a church in the 21st century, ensuring any changes consider our heritage and are in keeping with the existing building.