Mr McLaren wrote in the application: “We are planning to open a Potter’s House Church in Blackburn. The site proposed above will need no structural or layout changes only a change of use to a place of worship.”

The Evangelical Potter’s House Church is classed as a ‘megachurch’ in the United States. It has fifteen locations in the UK in Preston and Bolton, and several others in Yorkshire, the Midlands and in London. It was established in 1987 by “former hippie converts to the Jesus Movement” Paul and Renee Stephens. They refer to themselves as a “relaxed and down-to-earth church”. They pride themselves on welcoming all races, age groups, backgrounds and providing a multicultural, multi-generational and multi-ethnic support structure for everyone in search of God.

According to their spokesperson: “During the past decades, PHC has witnessed God do amazing things. In the developing stages of the ministry, a wave of youth joined the church. Many of them came from single-parent homes where the realities of gangs, teen pregnancy, drugs, and other social challenges were always looming. As they embraced a clear message to be serious-minded followers of Christ, other areas of their lives flourished as well.”

Source: https://premierchristian.news/