THE parish of Slaidburn with Tosside is going to be making an historic move in the summer when it moved from being part of the Diocese of Leeds and becomes part of the Diocese of Blackburn.

The parish has been part of the Anglican Diocese of Leeds (and its predecessor the historic Diocese of Bradford) since 1919, when the diocese was first created. The parish, thought to be the largest in area in England, nestles in an area knows as the Hodder Valley, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) set within the Forest of Bowland, a popular area for walking and cycling.

The parish sits within two districts, that of the Ribble Valley and Craven.

It includes the rural villages of Newton in Bowland, Dunsop Bridge, Slaidburn, and Tosside, and the churches of St Andrew’s Slaidburn, St Bartholomew’s Tosside, and St James’s Dale Head. Prior to 1974 the whole parish was in the West Riding, but now half of it is in Lancashire, and half of it is in North Yorkshire.

The parish of Slaidburn with Tosside is part of the Bowland and Ewecross Deanery in the Episcopal Area of Ripon, and the Deanery has organised a ‘Farewell Service’ on Saturday, June 3at 3pm in St Andrew’s church, Slaidburn, to which everyone is invited.

Tea and cake will be available in church from 2pm, and parking will be in the school car park. The service will be a celebration of the parish, and an opportunity to pray for the parish at this time of change. The Bishop of Leeds, The Right Reverend Nick Baines, will be preaching.

The parish church of St Andrew has a Jacobean screen and a Georgian pulpit. The brass band composer William Rimmer (1862–1936) composed the now-popular march, named Slaidburn after the village, for the Slaidburn Silver Band, whose band mebers have been entertaining the communities of the Hodder and Ribble Valleys for over 100 years, and are now conducted by John Cowking.

John is also organist at Slaidburn parish church which repeats the situation in the mid 1850s of Henry Dugdale who was also organist and conductor at Slaidburn (plus being head teacher at Slaidburn School.)

Saturday, June 3 is also the date on which the Martyrs of Uganda are commemorated, notably James Hannington, whose son became Rector of Slaidburn in the 1950s, and who will be remembered in the service.