Church bosses have relented on their decision to remove the ashes of 152 former parishioners from the site of a much cherished remembrance garden.

Devoted worshippers at Padiham’s St Philip’s Church, which closed its doors nine years ago, were left angry and distressed when work began last month on dismantling the remembrance garden, containing the ashes, known as ‘the grotto’ last month.

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The Diocese of Salford gave an assurance, at the time of the church closure, that ‘preserving the proper dignity and respect to the cremated remains of every person whose ashes are interred in the Garden of Remembrance will be of the highest priority.”

The remembrance garden at St Philip's Church in Padiham in the process of being demolished. Containing the ashes of 152 former worshippers, church bosses have relented on their decision to remove them from the site and instead a new memorial will be created.

So many families were distressed to learn that a plan was in place to remove the ashes and plaques to St John the Baptist Church in Padiham, where a new memorial would be created. Relatives of the deceased expressed their anger and upset at the lack of consultation over such a sensitive issue. There was also a lot of opposition to the plan to move the ashes to another church.

In an announcement this week a spokesman for the Diocese of Salford confirmed that the ashes would now remain at St Philip’s in a newly created memorial. The spokesman said: “We understand the depth of feeling in the community, therefore we took a moment to pause and consider alternative options.

“It is not possible for the ashes to remain in their current position on the site of St Philip’s, but, after listening to the thoughts of residents, we have been able to find an alternative location at St Philip’s. A new memorial will be created to the left of the presbytery, with access via the old gate on Slade Lane. This approach allows the ashes to remain within the parish grounds and to be cared for with dignity and respect.

"The area will provide a quiet and prayerful place of remembrance, where families and parishioners can continue to remember their loved ones.

The remembrance garden, known as 'the grotto' at St Philip's Church in Padiham, contained the ashes of 152 former worshippers. Once dismantled a new memorial will be created on the site of the church which closed in 2017.

“We are currently taking forward the necessary arrangements, in the interim the ashes will remain in their current position, until the new memorial is created and a transfer can be arranged.”

A temporary covering has been erected over the ashes until the new memorial is created.

One of the main protestors against the plan to remove the ashes was Mrs Pat McGough. A devoted member of St Philip’s congregation since she was a child, the ashes of both Pat’s parents and her uncle are interred in the grotto. And it was her father, Bob Mannion, who helped to build the grotto and make the name plates.

Pat said: “This has all been done wrong from the very beginning and, from messages I’ve been receiving, there are still a lot of upset and angry people saying this should never have happened.

“As far as I’m aware there are still relatives who have no idea what’s happened. I would have thought they could have put a sign up stating the ashes will now stay on St Philip’s land but in a different location.”