Early Days

Out of apparently irrelevant events come momentous results and the Presbyterian Church in Solihull, later to be known as St. Ninian’s, is an outstanding example.

In 1943 a Mrs. Alice Brown lost her husband, a prominent Solicitor in Birmingham, and was bombed out of her home. She decided to live in Solihull and invited her widowed sister, Hilda Alexander to share her home at 638 Streetsbrook Road. Unfortunately, without transport, Mrs. Alexander found it difficult to attend either St. Columba’s Presbyterian Church of England, Moseley or her own church of St. George’s, Handsworth where she had been an elder for Several years. She therefore referred the problem to the Presbytery and on the invitation of the Church Extension Committee of the Presbytery of Birmingham (Convenor - the Reverend W. S. Ferrie of Erdington) and at the instigation of Mr. Charles Lacey, Clerk of Session at Moseley and of Mr. A. C. McArthur, Solihull, also a member of Moseley congregation, a public service, duly advertised, was held in the Council House, Solihull on 28th April 1946 at 6.30 p. m. The Service, which 38 people attended, was conducted by the Reverend Gilbert Porteous of Sheldon, and Mr. Ferrie was the preacher. Afterwards a committee was appointed: Mrs. Alexander, Messrs. Fisher, Hanna, Hay, McArthur, Michie, Morgan and Walker. Mr. Walker became chairman at the first meeting of the Committee on 3rd May. Services were held in the Council House on 19th May, 23rd June and 14th July in the morning, thereafter they were held in Eversfield School in the Warwick Road.

In September, the Reverend William Cross was appointed by Presbytery to take charge for a period of 6 months. In the same month it was proposed to purchase a site for a church in Grove Road. The Congregational Church (now Christ Church United Reformed Church) objected that the site was too near their own church, being about half a mile away. Representatives of the Presbytery and the Warwickshire Congregational Union conferred and the Committee was advised to abandon the project. It did so, and turned its attentions to the Warwick Road / Seven Star Road area instead. Next Stratford Road, Shirley was investigated and as a result of advertising, sites were offered in Lugtrout Lane, Grove Road, Sharmans Cross Road, Lode Lane and Widney Lane, all of which were reckoned to be too far from built-up areas except the one in Lode Lane which was deemed to be eminently suitable.

Mr. Cross’s appointment terminated at the end of June 1947. Thereafter monthly services were held at Mrs. Alexander’s home in Streetsbrook Road until the end of 1949. These were conducted by the Reverend Herbert Lewis, Church Extension agent of the Assembly, and others. In June 1947, Mr. Walker resigned on leaving the district and Mr. James Hay was appointed Chairman in his place. In August Mr. Hope Mitchell was appointed Secretary in place of Mr. A. C. McArthur. Also in August 1947 it was resolved to adopt the site in Lode Lane and to ask the Presbytery to sanction its purchase. The scheme was sanctioned in January 1948 by the Presbytery who recommended the purchase of the site to the Assembly Church Extension Committee and negotiations began with the Vendors.