Manchester and Salford Methodist Mission

The Manchester and Salford Wesleyan Methodist Mission was founded in 1886 and was based at the new Central Hall in Manchester, which had been built on the site of Oldham Street Chapel. Under the dynamic leadership of Revd. Samuel Collier, the Mission became a highly successful centre for evangelical work. Central Hall could not accommodate all those wanting to attend the Sunday services, so the Mission started holding services in the Free Trade Hall - resulting in some of the largest Methodist congregations ever. These services continued until 1910, when they were moved to the newly-built Albert Mission Hall in Peter Street.

In addition to the evangelical work done through Central Hall and other mission halls, the Manchester and Salford Mission did social work, following the principle of 'Need, not creed'. The Mission ran a number of homes and hostels:

Men's Home, Hood Street, Ancoats

Gun Street Labour Yard, Ancoats

Women's Home and Refuge, Great Ancoats Street

Maternity Home and Hospital, 42 High Street, Chorlton-on-Medlock

(later Lorna Lodge, Didsbury)

Hammond House Preventative Home for Girls in Reddish

The Mission also ran a people's café, a labour advice bureau, recreational and educational clubs and did prison, hospital and factory visitations. A special feature of Mission life from the early days was the Midday Service, held every Tuesday, led by the most notable preachers of the time and attended by a varied congregation of people.

The establishment of the Welfare State after the Second World War, brought change to the Mission's social ministries - for example, the men's home was closed, as that type of hostel accommodation was no longer needed, and in general fewer people were coming to the Mission for material help, though they still came for guidance and counselling. The Mission took a new direction in its social work: for example it opened the Chatterton Hey Rehabilitation Centre, Edenfield, in the 1970s and ran a family support centre in Hulme in conjunction with National Children's Home.

The composition of the Mission circuit also changed. From 1955 the circuit included the Wythenshawe churches of Baguley Hall, Higher Baguley, Brownley Green, Lawton Moor, Northenden and Woodhouse Park. They left in 1984 to join the re-formed Wythenshawe Circuit. Churches joined from other circuits, some closed, some amalgamated to form new churches: for example Trinity Church in Ancoats was an amalgamation of Wesley Hall, Victoria Hall and New Islington.

In September 2002 the circuit was incorporated into a new Manchester Circuit along with the Withington, Droylsden and Openshaw and Manchester (North) and Middleton Circuits.