Funds could not be found for the complete restoration the organ deserved, so in the end, it was decided to rebuild the instrument in a reduced state, but to instruct the organ builder to leave within the organ chamber those parts of the instrument which it was not then economically feasible to restore. The work was completed in 1969 by Charles A Smethurst of Gorton.

All the pipework at present in use in the organ is from the original Hill instrument, and it is a tribute to Hill that the organ sounds so wonderful today, in spite of its much reduced state.

The original Great Organ, now silent, is still in place behind the western arch of the organ chamber, though some ranks are missing. The Pedal 16’ Open Wood is stacked in the chamber, along with the original pedal slider soundboard. Sadly, the work of 1969 included the scrapping of the original wind system, and its replacement by a new electric blower and two small double-rise reservoirs. This will need major modification when total restoration is accomplished. The original three-manual console with its elegant french-style terraced jambs was also changed at this time to a very basic two manual stopkey design, though the exterior case of the console was retained.

In spite of these losses, the parish is at present embarking on a start to fund raising towards restoring this wonderful example of Victorian organ building.

As a stop-gap measure, the pipework of the present Great division has recently been cleaned and the tuning-slides have been replaced with new. The Harmonic Flute 4’ from the former Great has replaced the Dulciana 8’, the pipes of the latter stop being stored in the chamber. When this was done and the Harmonic Flute was heard for the first time in thirty years, it came as a surprising foretaste of the scale of the old Great Organ. In fact, in order to achieve blend with the present Great (the former Choir Organ), the Harmonic Flute had to receive (reversible!) voicing treatment to reduce its output by almost 50%. We can only speculate on the potential glory of sound which one day awaits us when the entire instrument is restored.