Country Parish

Alton is a picture postcard village in the Staffordshire Moorlands, famous for the theme park just up the road, and just on the fringes of the Staffordshire Peak District.

The villagers are served by three churches; St Peter’s, St John’s and the Methodist chapel. The Anglican parish is 'Alton with Bradley', comprising St Peter’s and the smaller St Leonard’s, which is in the hamlet of Bradley just over a mile away.

'A Country Parish' will be written up here on the web month by month through 2008 with photos, interactive comments and audio interviews.
And... please leave your thoughts and comments on the messageboard. See the link for that on the right-hand side of this page.

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September '08 - Part 7 of 'A Country Parish'

The summer which never really got started is over and plans for the Harvest celebrations are being made.

The tragic coach crash in the village which made national and international news served as a reminder of how people can pull together in a community when disaster strikes.

It also helped focus on the work of Alton Christians Together - the aim there is to work closely with other denominations in the village - progress is slow, but there is progress...

Alton's Methodist Chapel has a tiny but passionate membership. For Cheadle's Methodist circuit minister Rev. Tina Swire, it's just one of five churches she has responsibility for.

She's quite new to the job, having worked in Canada for many years. She told Mary Fox about the challenges -  and her love for Stoke City Football Team...

St John's Roman Catholic Church sits in the grounds of the Alton Castle Retreat. Father Philip Gay looks after both and supports Alton Christians Together...