Heating costs leave church parishioners in the cold

St Oswald's Church was built in 1934

Parishioners are unable to worship because it is so cold in their church they can "see their breath" when they pray.

The central heating at St Oswald's in Middlesbrough is broken, and church staff say they cannot afford a new system.

To stave off the cold, the congregation uses a small back room for services between October and April.

The Reverend Kath Dean said the church was so cold people were "blue" when they left.

When she last led a winter service there, Ms Dean was left "aching with the cold".

"It was just awful," she said.

Rob Binnie welcomes the congregation to services and says he stands outside of the church to do so, "because it's warmer".

"It's embarrassing for us when we're trying to help people and they have to pass through a freezing cold church," he added.

Helping the needy

St Oswald's was built in 1934 and is a lively community hub that incorporates the Genesis Project under its roof - a scheme providing food and clothes to those struggling.

Money from donations and weekly collections is used to fund the £1,000-a-week cost of the project, with little left over for the heating fund.

When asked about funding from the Church of England, Ms Dean said its money could not be put towards a heating system.

She said a lot of it was "already committed to property, pensions and church repairs".

Services are expected to resume in the church in April or May, when the weather improves.