A church built in the early 1960s to serve a post-war housing estate. Although not of special architectural interest, its octagonal plan form is an early example in the diocese of the departure from the traditional longitudinal plan. The interior has now been split in two, and the building is shared with the local Anglican congregation. 

The original design has been greatly altered. Along with the Caldmore Area Housing Association and the Walsall Health Authority the parish joined forces in a scheme to sell off surplus land to build social housing. At the same time the worship space at St Catherine’s was divided in two, with the left-hand part being developed for meeting rooms, kitchens etc., which enabled joint use of the building with the Anglican community (hence the addition of ‘with St Chad’ in the dedication). The church was consecrated on 26 June 1996 jointly by the Archbishop of Birmingham and the Anglican Bishop of Lichfield.

The original design has been greatly altered. Along with the Caldmore Area Housing Association and the Walsall Health Authority the parish joined forces in a scheme to sell off surplus land to build social housing. At the same time the worship space at St Catherine’s was divided in two, with the left-hand part being developed for meeting rooms, kitchens etc., which enabled joint use of the building with the Anglican community (hence the addition of ‘with St Chad’ in the dedication). The church was consecrated on 26 June 1996 jointly by the Archbishop of Birmingham and the Anglican Bishop of Lichfield.

Description

The church is octagonal and is faced with light brown bricks. Each face has a gable and most faces have tall windows, now with uPVC framing. The roof is of artificial slates and in the centre there rises a slender copper spirelet. Internally the right-hand side forms the worship space under a lowered ceiling, the rest of the building being divided off for secular uses. There are no furnishings of particular note.

Heritage Details