Parish History

Early Beginnings

The first Mass in the parish since The Reformation was offered by Fr Francis Hays in the pavilion of Nottingham Castle Cricket Ground on Loughborough Road. Father Hays was then appointed priest in charge of the Mass Centre set up in the house which is now part of The Becket School.

Below is a photo of the Holy Spirit Church taken from the West Bridgford Directory of 1938. If you notice the entrance was at the front on Melton road, there also appears to be an extra extension on the side (Which were toilets apparently!) with a bell tower. In the background are houses where the Social Centre is now.

The first stone of the church was laid by Bishop Thomas Dunn in 1929, and the church was completed by 1932.

The first Parish Priest of the Holy Spirit was Fr. Francis T. Royds. The original church on the Victoria Road site was opened in 1930.

He was succeeded by Fr Robert Woodbridge and Fr John Buckley. Fr James Monaghan was appointed Parish Priest in 1966 and engaged in an extensive building programme.

The present Social Centre was opened in 1967, St Edmund Campion Primary School early in 1974 and the present church was constructed in the May of the same year.

Fr Gregory Tobin became Parish Priest in 2001 and came to us from The Briars Residential Youth Centre in Crich, Derbyshire. Fr Christopher Thomas joined us as Assistant Priest in 2008 from St Thomas More in Leicester.

Fr. Christopher was then succeeded as Assistant Priest by Fr. Stanley Ofoegbu from Nigeria in November 2009. After ten years in the Parish, Fr. Greg left the Parish with Fr. Stanley to Glossop Parish.

Fr. Michael Brown then succeeded Fr. Tobin as Parish Priest in September 2011 with Assistant Priest Fr. John McCay Fr. Michael retired in August 2022 and Fr. John returned to the Cathedral.

The Holy Spirit Parish celebrated 40 years of the Consecration of the present Church in July 2014.

Our current Priests are Fr. John Martin and Fr. Liam Carpenter who arrived in the parish in September 2022.