A POPULATION shift away from town centres is forcing the twinning of Roman Catholic parishes in the region, according to a clergyman.

Bishop John Crowley, head of the Middlesbrough Diocese, has announced proposals to amalgamate parishes in Scarborough, Saltburn and Middlesbrough in the New Year.

The move has been prompted by several factors, including the dwindling number of clergy and a drop in the number of people attending church.

However, last night, Father Derek Turnham, whose three parishes are due to merge, said that the main reason for the change was people moving away from town centres.

He said: "It is partly driven by the smaller number of priests, but it is also driven by the enormous drop in population.

"For the past 50 years, people have been moving out of towns and on to the estates. We have three parishes in central Middlesbrough and we have about the same number in all of them as we would have had in one 50 years ago."

As the parish priest for Sacred Heart Church, St Patrick's Church, and the old cathedral, Fr Turnham already has experience of partial twinning, whereby certain resources are shared.

Now, the parishes are to be fully integrated, with Sacred Heart becoming the main church and St Patrick's second in rank.

Similar changes are being implemented throughout the Middlesbrough Diocese, covering North and East Yorkshire, Richmond, Leyburn and York, which has only 80 priests covering 88 parishes.

Fr Turnham said the result would be positive.

"At this stage, the bishop says he is not in the business of closing churches, and we have found that people are very positive about twinning.

"Encouraging two or three parishes to work together can have all sorts of benefits. The lack of clergy has only made us more efficient."