WELCOME
About Us
We are two Catholic parishes working together to provide pastoral care for the central and western areas of the Isle of Wight. St Thomas of Canterbury church is situated in the middle of Newport, the county town of the Island. St Saviour's is at the far west end of the Island between Freshwater Bay and Totland Bay, close by Tennyson Down and the Needles.
St Thomas of Canterbury in Newport is believed to be the oldest purpose-built post-Reformation Catholic parish church in the country. It was erected by the benefactress, Elizabeth Heneage, immediately after the Roman Catholic Relief Act of 1791, which allowed Catholics to practice their religion, but with restrictions. Steeples, bells, in fact anything that made a building look too much like a church, were forbidden. As a result, St Thomas's has a very plain exterior, and looks more like a Quaker Meeting House than a Catholic church. Inside are none of the side chapels and dark mysterious corners so typical of the nineteenth century churches that followed.
The building is uncluttered, rectangular and full of light. The result is an elegant simplicity which makes St Thomas's one of the most beautiful Catholic churches in Britain.
St Saviour's was built in 1923 to accommodate the ever growing number of Catholics in the West of the Wight who could no longer fit for Sunday mass into the chapel at Weston Manor. This was the home of the Ward family who donated the land for the church, school and presbytery to the Church. The church is Italianate in style.
Our communities have benefited from the generosity of kind benefactors throughout our history and we are grateful for all the kindness that helps to sustain us. We welcome both local parishioners and the many visitors to the Island.
PORTSMOUTH CATHOLIC DIOCESE
https://www.portsmouthdiocese.org.uk/
© Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth 2023 | Registration number: England Registered Charity No. 1199568 Jersey Registered Charity No. 457 and Guernsey Registered Charity No.CH263 | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy.
SUPPORT YOUR PARISH
If you would like to donate regularly, or just give a one-off donation to the parish you can follow this link:
If you would prefer to set up a standing order with your bank then the parish bank account details are:
NAME PRCDTR StSaviour&StThomas of Canterbury
ACCOUNT NUMBER: 00883221
SORT CODE: 30-93-04
If you want to boost your donation by 25p of Gift Aid for every £1 you donate you just need to fill the Gift Aid Declaration Form and send it to the Parish office.
- Parish office
- 96 Pyle Street
- Newport
- Isle of Wight
- PO30 1UH