Borough comes together to say we #lovesthelens

Article date: 16 May 2025

More than 100 people from areas including business, sport, health, education, armed forces and the community and voluntary sector attended the event at St Helens Town Hall after Annual Council, which supported the launch of #lovesthelens which is a campaign created by St Helens Parish Church.

The campaign aims to bring together people to focus on what they love about the borough and the positive things that people do to make life better for others. It will initially start with a six-week festival at the Church Square based church which runs from May 21st to June 28th with a variety of events showcasing the brilliant people and groups of the borough.

People are being encouraged to use #lovesthelens to share what they love about our borough on social media.

Reverend Rachel Shuttleworth said: " We are so excited for the next six-weeks as St Helens Parish Church celebrates the #lovesthelens festival showcasing the creative, diverse,  inspiring and innovative town and borough we are part of. With music, photography,  poetry, sport and loads more - there's something for everyone. Showcasing so many voluntary and community groups.

"Our prayer is that it doesn't end here, but the festival is a springboard for more as people join together to celebrate those who work so hard to make a difference to the community and how brilliant St Helens is."

St Helens Borough Council Leader Councillor Anthony Burns said: "When I heard about the church's plans for #lovesthelens I was so inspired and felt it was just what our borough needs right now. Mahatma Ghandhi said: 'Be the change that you wish to see in the world' and #lovesthelens is all about recognising the good things all around us and reconnecting with the pride we all have for our borough. We were delighted to bring partners together to raise awareness of this fantastic campaign at the event which called on everyone to think about what they love about St Helens.

"I'm a proud Sintelliner and fortunate enough in my position to be able to meet the many amazing people who are delivering wonderful projects, helping others. We should all be celebrating those amazing people who go out to make a difference. 

"This is also a really exciting time for our borough with so many projects now making their way from vision to reality, bringing with them high quality jobs. Raising our aspirations for ourselves and others means opening up people's eyes to the opportunities that are right on their doorstep. As a council we are proud to support the #lovesthelens campaign and we urge everyone to do the same."

For a full events programme guide, call into Parish Church or visit: www.sthelensparishchurch.org