Salem Chapel, Leeds Facts for Kids

Salem Chapel is an old church building located in Hunslet Lane, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It stands across the street from where the old Tetley's Brewery used to be.

Salem Chapel, Leeds

A Look Back in Time
What Salem Chapel Is Like Today
Events and Famous Visitors
- Important Government Meetings
- Other Notable Guests
Images for kids
See also

A Look Back in Time

Salem Chapel was built in 1791 by a minister named Edward Parsons. This makes it the oldest surviving non-conformist chapel in the centre of Leeds. Non-conformist means it was a Protestant church that wasn't part of the main Church of England.

The building is so important that it's a Grade II listed building. This means it's protected because of its special history and architecture. Its unique curved front was added later, in 1906.

This historic chapel is famous for being the place where Leeds United Football Club was born! In 1919, a public meeting was held in Salem's hall. At this meeting, the old Leeds City F.C. team was closed down because of money problems. Right after that, Leeds United F.C. was formed in the very same place.

Salem Chapel stopped being used as a church in 2001. The last sermon was given by a writer and psychologist named Reverend Harry Guntrip.

What Salem Chapel Is Like Today

In 2009, a person named Professor Adam Beaumont bought the building. He is the founder of a technology company called aql. Professor Beaumont paid to fix up and restore the chapel.

Now, Salem Chapel is the main office for aql. It also has special rooms for computer data, a place for exhibitions, a bar, and a large auditorium. This auditorium has a glass floor and can hold 370 people!

On November 17, 2011, Salem Chapel received a special blue plaque from the Leeds Civic Trust. This plaque celebrates its important design and religious history. The Lord Mayor of Leeds helped to show the plaque to everyone.

Since April 2018, Salem Chapel has also been home to the Estonian Consulate. This is like a small embassy for Estonia that helps people from Estonia in the North of England and the Isle of Man.

Events and Famous Visitors

The auditorium at Salem Chapel is often used for important events, including government announcements.

Important Government Meetings

In February 2015, the chapel hosted the Prime Minister at the time, David Cameron, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne. They were there to talk about the government's Northern Powerhouse plan. This plan aims to improve the economy and transport in the North of England.

George Osborne came back to Salem Chapel in February 2017 with Lord Jim O'Neill. They launched the first report for the Northern Powerhouse Partnership. In January 2018, the chapel was used to launch Transport for the North's plan to improve transport in the North of England over the next 30 years.

Other Notable Guests

Besides these politicians, many other interesting people have visited Salem Chapel's auditorium for events and talks. These include:

Helen Sharman OBE, who was Britain's first astronaut.
Bas Lansdorp, the CEO of Mars One, a project that aimed to send people to Mars.
Tiina Intelmann, the Estonian Ambassador to the United Kingdom.
Matt Hancock, who was the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

The launch of a book called Leeds: Cradle of Innovation also took place at Salem Chapel on June 14, 2018. This book is about the history of new ideas and inventions in Leeds.

The chapel is also one of the places used for the Leeds Digital Festival and Leeds International Festival. It has also hosted the annual FinTech North event since it started.