St John the Baptist Church, Stamford Bridge (All pictures copyright Michael Catterick)

SOME FACTS AND FIGURES

THE VILLAGE: FACTS AND FIGURES

EMPLOYMENT

TRANSPORT THEN AND NOW

HOUSING

EDUCATION

COMMERCIAL AND SOCIAL

HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

ARCHITECTURE OF THE CHURCH

CONCLUSION

SOME FACTS AND FIGURES

INTERIOR LOOKING EAST

In the October 2003 count of church attendance on a "normal" Sunday 60 adults and 11 children were present. However the All-Age and Informal Communion services have higher attendances, so these figures are probably too low for the current picture.

Special services are occasionally held in the evening, including an All Souls service for the bereaved, and a Songs of Praise. Other forms of evening worship are being tried to find out if there is a need for them. Communication of activities within the church is by the weekly "Pew News" leaflet.

Childrens activities include a Pram Service held weekly in church for parents, grandparents, carers and their pre-school children. There is also a weekly "Free Spirits" group who meet on Fridays during term time, a Sunday School which meets twice a month and a lively Youth Group of 8 to 14 year olds which meets on alternate weeks. There is also a Youth Group for the 15 year and up who meet once a month. The priest goes into the local primary school to take occasional assemblies and teach individual classes. She is also on the chaplaincy team at Archbishop Holgate's School in York which an increasing number of village children attend.

There is a branch of the Mothers' Union. Each month there is an afternoon meeting which starts with a short service. The Mothers' Union members are involved in events within the Deanery and Archdeanery.

Music in the church is gaining a higher profile. An adult group of Singers help to introduce new songs into worship, supported by guitarists and organist

Pastoral work includes services led by the priest at the nursing home in the village, and the priest and a lay member take communion to the housebound. A Visiting team of 6 members of the congregation work to improve the pastoral care of the sick, lonely and others in need. These members have undertaken a listening course to improve their skills, and are actively supporting a number of people.

There is no actual mission statement but the priest writes: -
"We are trying to grow in faith and trust in God, in lives rooted in prayer and worship, in order to reach out to the whole community to share Christ's love with everyone."

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THE VILLAGE: FACTS AND FIGURES

THE VILLAGE SQUARE AND MAIN SHOPPING AREA. (The River Derwent is to the right just off picture).

The village of Stamford Bridge is situated on the boundary of North and East Yorkshire, about eight miles east of the City of York. It originated as an Anglo-Saxon settlement at the site of a ford on the River Derwent where several Roman roads converged.

A bridge was constructed over the river and this was mentioned in accounts of 1066 when King Harold defeated Earl Tostig and Harold Hardrada at the Battle of Stamford Bridge, before marching to Hastings where he suffered defeat.

Until the second half of the twentieth century Stamford Bridge was a small village supporting the local farming community. The population was relatively static over centuries. In 1377 62 people paid poll tax; in 1801 the population was 170; in 1861 417; in 1901 395, rising to 577 in 1951 partly due to a slight enlargement in the civil boundaries. By 1971 there were 1206 inhabitants, since when there has been considerable growth to 3099 in 1991, and a 9.5% increase to 3394 in 2001.

The age profile taken from the Diocese of York data for 2001 shows that 23% of the total population of the parish was under 19 years and 23% over 60 years. There is very little racial diversity with only 1.04% of the inhabitants being non-white. Consequently 84.6% of the population claimed to be Christians, 11.5% had no religion and 7% no-response. There were only 3 Jews, 3 Muslims and 8 Sikhs in the parish. 65% of the inhabitants were living as a married couple, 8.9% co-habiting and the remaining 26% living in single person households.

52% of the total population were in full-time or part-time employment, 4.6% were either unemployed or long-term off sick, 11.6% retired and 2.9% full-time students. 

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EMPLOYMENT

THE PLASTICS FACTORY

Arable farming and associated services provided employment for local inhabitants until the mid 19th century when there was a growth of shopkeepers and tradesmen in the village. The chief non-agricultural employment was found in brick making, quarrying at the gravel pits and milling on the River Derwent.

Today local employment is found in the village shops, the three pubs, the nursing home, the primary school, several small family businesses, the plastics factory established in Stamford Bridge in 1834, and at the prison at Full Sutton which was built in the late 1960's. However with improved communication the village has become a dormitory settlement with many people travelling to work in York, Leeds, Hull and on the east coast.

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TRANSPORT THEN AND NOW

NUMBER 10 BUS GOING TO YORK.

The river was navigable in the Middle Ages but, after a weir was constructed on 1602 with the new mill, there were no boats until the lock was built in the 1720. The river was used to transport coal, lime, corn and flour until 1939.

In 1847 a railway line was opened running from Market Weighton to York with a station in Stamford Bridge but it was closed in 1965. The main A166 trunk from York to Bridlington runs through Stamford Bridge with the traffic at peak times being bottle-necked by the single-track bridge over the River Derwent. There is also easy access to the A1079 York to Hull road via High or Low Catton. There is a regular bus service to York every 20 minutes from Monday to Saturday with an hourly service in the evenings. On Sunday and Bank Holidays there is an hourly service. A less frequent service to Pocklington is also available.

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HOUSING

HOUSE IN A RECENTLY BUILT AREA

Much new housing development has taken place over the last 50 years, expanding the population from around 500 in 1951 to approximately 3500 in 2005. There is now little room for further expansion.

There has been major housing development over the last 50 years with the construction of many new estates. Today about 85% houses are owner-occupied, 5% privately rented, and 10% local authority owned, although some of these properties are now in private ownership.

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EDUCATION

STAMFORD BRIDGE PRIMARY SCHOOL

With the exception of a few children who go to the Roman Catholic schools in York or to private schools in York or Pocklington, village children attend Stamford Bridge Primary school.

It is run on traditional lines, with a strong emphasis on music. Children of secondary age go to Woldgate School in Pocklington, although many parents are now choosing Archbishop Holgate's in York in preference. A few attend All Saints' Roman Catholic School in York. There is a pre-school playgroup in the village.

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COMMERCIAL AND SOCIAL

VILLAGE SHOPS WITH THE HEALTH CENTRE ON THE RIGHT.

Stamford Bridge has the essential shops - a chemist, baker, newsagent, small supermarket, an ironmonger and three pubs. There is a General Practitioners' surgery, a dentist and a library.

There are two churches, St John the Baptist and the Methodist Chapel that has a recently refurbished hall attached. There are over 40 voluntary groups within the village, ranging from Womens' Institute, Probus, Yorkshire Countrywomen, WRVS, the Royal British Legion, Scouts and Guides to the Archaeology Club, Flower Club, Choir, Drama Group and several clubs for the elderly. There are good sports facilities maintained by local groups - a cricket field, 2 football pitches, 2 tennis courts, a bowling green, an indoor sports hall for badminton and football, and the school swimming pool run by the PTA. Netball and hockey are also played.

Elderly local residents often complain that Stamford Bridge has lost its sense of community which is not surprising considering its growth and with so many travelling to work outside the village. However together with the churches and the school, these local groups help to generate a sense of belonging within the local community.

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HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

ST JOHN'S FROM MOOR ROAD

The church of St John the Baptist in Stamford Bridge was built in 1868 as a chapel-of-ease in the parish of Catton with Stamford Bridge and Scoreby. The mother church was All Saints at Low Catton which dates from 1150. Scoreby is a hamlet on the east side of the River Derwent and until the late 1920's parishioners were rowed across the river to attend services at All Saints.

In 1978 All Saints was under threat of closure and St John's became the mother church, the parish being known as Stamford Bridge with Catton and Scoreby. All Saints was saved by very dedicated parishioners and now has a small thriving community.

According to historical documents cited in "A Victorian History of East Yorkshire" in 1348 Stamford Bridge had a chapel in which a hermit lived. In 1444 a chapel of St Edmund was mentioned which was later suppressed as a chantry chapel. On a map of 1616 there was a chapel of St Leonard on the Catton road. There appears to have been a dispute about the collecting of tithes for the Rector's stipend and his provision of services. The Chancellor of York intervened and decided that there should be a weekly service at Stamford Bridge, but that "the better and more able sort" should hear services at the parish church in Low Catton eight times a year. In 1743 there were two services on a Sunday at Low Catton with Holy Communion five times a year. In 1865 a service was held on a Friday and a Sunday in Stamford Bridge in a "service room".

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ARCHITECTURE OF THE CHURCH

INTERIOR LOOKING WEST

St John the Baptist was designed by G. Fowler Jones in early English style. It was built on land belonging to Lord Leconfield, partly financed by C.A.Darley of Burtonfield Hall in Stamford Bridge, with the remainder being raised by public donation.

The church is built of yellow sandstone with limestone dressings. The chancel has a vestry on the northern side; there is a nave with central aisle, a bell cot with two bells and a porch also on the north side. In the mid 1980's the church was reordered. The organ was removed from the left-hand wall of the chancel and the choir stalls removed. This enabled the altar rail to be brought forward and the altar table to be moved away from the rederos so that the officiating priest could face the congregation when presiding at communion. The organ was replaced by an electric one situated in the gallery at the west end of the church. Recently other internal changes have been made to create much needed space which includes the alteration of the Vestry into a kitchen and small meeting place. Shortly building will start on a much needed toilet facility.

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CONCLUSION

 

The original churchyard surrounding St John's was enlarged in 1936.

In 1965, although All Saints in Low Catton remained the mother church, the Rector moved from living in the Rectory in Low Catton to a new house opposite St John's in Stamford Bridge. At that time morning and evening services were alternated between the two churches, with a special subsidised church bus to transport parishioners. Today there are two regular services on a Sunday at Stamford Bridge at 08.00 and 10.45. Special services are organised for the group of the three churches in the benefice.

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