Carlisle Memorial Methodist Church << PREVIOUS | NEXT PROJECT >>
One of Belfast’s most striking buildings, Carlisle Memorial Methodist Church has served as a gateway to North Belfast since 1875. Designed by one of the city’s noted architectural sons, W.H. Lynn – a one-time partner of Sir Charles Lanyon – it took just three years to complete. Built in a High Victorian neo-Gothic style as a memorial to the son of local builder James Carlisle, it is now a sad reflection of the ravages of time on disused buildings.
At the heart of one of the most troubled parts of Belfast, Carlisle Memorial suffered a body blow from the construction of the city’s Westlink motorway in the mid-1960s. This was followed quickly by the outbreak of violence in the late ‘60s, which affected north Belfast in particular. A rapidly shrinking congregation caused the church trustees to sell the Church Halls in the late 1970s and to finally close the church in 1982.
Bought by the Ulster Provident Housing Association shortly afterwards, it was intended to convert the building for either social housing or for an arts use and for a short period it was used as artists’ workspace. Due to its location both efforts proved unfeasible and in the mid-1990s the building fell into total disuse. Various proposals have been suggested through the years but none have proved viable.
BBPT has expressed interest in Carlisle Memorial Church since the Trust was founded in 1996. In 2008 the Trust launched a major campaign to explore the possibility of a heritage-led regeneration project for north Belfast that would place Carlisle Memorial at the heart of both physical and social regeneration in the area. The area immediately surrounding the building is one of the most deprived in Northern Ireland and is home to communities with major social, economic and political problems.
In autumn 2009 BBPT published a report “Carlisle Memorial Church: Reuse and Restoration” following a major community consultation that sought the views of local people and government. The consultation found widespread support across the political divide for the building to be placed at the heart of a heritage-led regeneration effort. Shortly afterwards, through the efforts of BBPT, Carlisle Memorial Church was placed on the World Monument Fund Watch 2010 – a biennial list of the most endangered cultural and heritage sites in the world – making it the first building in Belfast to be afforded such global recognition.
Carlisle Memorial Church is a central feature of the Trust’s current work and we continue to work closely with the local communities and with government to evolve a long-term and sustainable future for one of Belfast’s most recognisable buildings. A successful heritage-led regeneration project at Carlisle Memorial that is based on both physical and social regeneration has the potential to act as a catalyst for much wider regeneration in north Belfast.