Public worship to cease at Low Smithy Chapel, Garsdale

After careful consideration and prayer, the Church Council of the Methodist Church in the Western Dales has made the decision to close Low Smithy Garsdale for public worship from May 2026. The Methodist congregation has been fully consulted over this decision, which comes after recognising both the lack of capacity to fill key roles, and the significant works needed to the chapel building highlighted in the recent quinquennial report. This decision will be communicated to the Cumbria Methodist Circuit at the next meeting.

The final service at Low Smithy will be its Chapel Anniversary, to be held at 2pm on Sunday 10th May 2026. This will be a special occasion to give thanks for all that God has done through the life and witness of this chapel over the years, and to celebrate the faithfulness of those who have worshipped and served here.

Although the chapel building will close, the congregation’s ecumenical fellowship will continue. There has been a kind offer from St John’s Church in Garsdale to host our Methodist service. This feels like a natural next step as Low Smithy has been worshipping ecumenically alongside St John’s for many years. The Church Council has agreed to accept this offer and will meet to determine next steps with regards to the relevant church authorities.