A METHODIST church in Darlington is celebrating a double anniversary.

The congregation at Eastbourne Methodist Church is celebrating the 21st anniversary of its Yarm Road church and the centenary of the previous premises in Louisa Street.

Methodists in the area first met in each others' houses for prayer, but as the town grew, Methodism became more popular and in 1860 a preaching place was started above a joiners shop.

Soon the number of worshippers outgrew the premises, so the expanding congregation decided to build a chapel in Louisa Street, known as the East Road chapel.

The chapel opened in 1868 and in 1884 foundation stones were laid in Yarm Road for a Sunday school.

Margaret Garrett, who has been a member of the congregation since the 1960s, said that the Louisa Street church became too small for the numbers attending, so a new one was built.

That opened a century ago, on October 29 1901 and seated up to 800 people.

Margaret said: "Various local dignitaries went to the new East Road Chapel, including Arthur Henderson, who became the first Foreign Secretary in the Labour government."

In the late 1940s, a youth club was launched, which became so successful that an annex was added to the Yarm Road Sunday school in the 1960s.

But the dwindling congregation at the Louisa Street chapel in the late 1970s led the church to sell the premises, and it became a Sikh temple.

A smaller worship centre was built on the Yarm Road site, which opened in 1980.

To celebrate the double anniversary, past ministers and 170 church members will gather for a special meal on Saturday, November 3, followed by celebratory services on Sunday, November 4. The first, at 10.30am, will be led by the Reverend Cameron Kirkwood. The 3pm service will be conducted by the Reverend Dr Gerald Bostock. Both men are past ministers of the church.

The present minister, the Reverend Graham Evans, said: "In the centenary we celebrate what God has done for us, through us and others, over the past 100 years, and it gives us the opportunity to look forward to the future."

Various fundraising events will be held throughout the centenary year in aid of local charities, culminating in a flower and craft festival next October