At the heart of St Helens Minster, something special is brewing and more than just good coffee!
The Minster Café, launched in September 2023 and is fast becoming a key part of the Minster’s growing ministry and missional vision. While the café began simply serving on Tuesday afternoons, it has grown into a vibrant community hub, now open three days a week and one Saturday a month alongside the town’s Makers Market.
This faithful step forward has been part of a wider journey. The St Helens Minster Leadership Team made the bold decision to appoint a dedicated café manager at the beginning of 2024. Since Holy Week, the café has welcomed guests every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Monthly Saturdays bring an extra buzz, with more visitors drawn into the Minster through the market and special events.
But The Minster Café is more than a place to meet for a drink. It’s becoming a space of welcome, service and partnership, an expression of the Minster’s calling to be a centre of faith, hospitality and mission in the heart of the town.
The café has hosted community radio broadcasts, free health checks in partnership with Liverpool John Moores University, and advice sessions from the local council on energy and sustainability. The first of what is hoped to be many organ recitals has taken place, and there are plans for Knit and Natter sessions, men’s groups, Bible studies, and discipleship courses like Start and Alpha.
This café ministry is part of a much wider story. As St Helens Minster looks ahead to the 100th anniversary of its current building in 2026, it is preparing for redesignation – anchored in its five-year vision Becoming Minster. The aim? To be open seven days a week, serving not just the worshipping congregation but the whole town, in partnership with the deanery and beyond.
Thanks to support from Together Liverpool, the café was also able to offer free meals over Easter and May half term, feeding around 300 children in total. And on Saturday 31 May, as part of the town-wide Festival of #LoveStHelens, the Minster was alive with activity as 350 people passed through, enjoying refreshments, exploring the building’s heritage and even trying their hand at bell ringing with support from volunteers across the Diocese.
The Minster Café aligns closely with the values of Fit for Mission. While the café’s development has grown out of the Minster’s unique calling, it is fully supported by the wider parish of Church St Helens and resonates with FFM’s aims of enabling churches to be more missional, sustainable and collaborative. The work here is a strong example of how local vision and diocesan priorities can come together in creative and fruitful ways.
Volunteers for the café come from across St Helens, from various churches, community groups and walks of life and the team is always looking to grow.
In the background of all this, the Love St Helens Festival has caught the imagination of the town. Originally launched through the Minster, it has become a year-long movement of positivity and hope, seeking to amplify the voices of those who love their community and are working to make it better.
There’s much still to do – but the doors are open, the kettle’s on, and everyone is welcome.
Could you join us? We’d love to hear from anyone who’d like to volunteer, help serve or just come and see what’s happening at The Minster Café.
