The Parish of Our Lady of Lourdes was founded in 1925 when the Marist Fathers bought the large house – Hop Villa – on Cottingham Road where they opened Marist College, a Catholic secondary school for boys. On the left side of Hop Villa there was a small stable block, which was to become the first parish church under their care with the name of Our Lady of Lourdes.
In 1957 a new purpose built church was consecrated under the name of Our Lady of Lourdes and St Peter Chanel, although it was popularly known locally as the “Marist Church”. St Peter Chanel, the first Marist martyr, had been canonised in 1954.
The Marist Fathers set up the Catholic Chaplaincy for the University of Hull. The chaplaincy was later taken over by the Diocese when Fr Anthony Storey established its base in Newland Park.
Marist College, which had grown considerably on the land behind Hop Villa later merged with St Mary’s, a girls’ school run by the Sisters of Mercy, to become St Mary’s College and St Mary’s Sixth Form Centre. The land and buildings of the former Marist College were sold in 1988.
The parish continued in the care of the Marist Fathers until Easter 2018 when it was transferred to the Diocese of Middlesbrough and Bishop Terence Drainey asked the University Chaplain, Fr William Massie, to assume the additional responsibility of the parish.
Our parish continues today, serving people from a wide variety of backgrounds and nationalities.