In the 1950s, Catholics in the Jurong area had to travel some distance to St Joseph’s Church at Upper Bukit Timah Road. For greater convenience, three chapels were established to cater to the Catholic community in Jurong; the Chapel of Fatimah in Tuas Village, the Taman Jurong Chapel and the Gek Poh Chapel.
However, urban redevelopment in the 1970s saw the government acquire the land on which the Gek Poh and Tuas chapels were located. Thus, Gek Poh Chapel and Taman Jurong Chapel merged to form the Church of St Francis of Assisi. The church was opened in Boon Lay in 1976.
In 2002, the church was renovated and expanded. Today, the church hosts a congregation of about 3,000 and holds services in English, Mandarin, Tamil, Malayalam and Tagalog. It continues its tradition of social service by offering free lunches every Monday to Saturday.
