A simple, brick and portal frame structure, very characteristic of the 1960s, with a single worship space plus a parish room added later on the north side. The latter and the associated narthex have, if anything, added to the visual character of the complex.

For many years the house at no. 1 Bolton Road was used as a chapel of ease. Towards the end of the 1950s the decision was taken to demolish part of the hose and build a new chapel to accommodate some 180 people. The new building, erected in 1959-60, was linked by a porch and sacristy to the house which then became the presbytery. In the 1990s a parish room was added on the north side and a narthex-porch created at the west end (by Eckhard Weisner, a German architect who liked to work in wood, information from Chris Fanning).

Description

The church is oriented to the south; directions given in this description are liturgical.

The church is constructed of precast concrete portal frames and is covered by a concrete, ribbed tile roof, with walls of facing bricks, both externally and internally. The body of the church is of four bays (three in the nave, one in the sanctuary) plus a narthex at the west end, in front of which stands an open porch with a pair of polygonal timber piers. On the south side there is a strip of glazing running the full length of the nave. The same feature also appeared on the north side but is now blind following the creation of the parish room; daylight on the north is now provided by three pairs of lights flush with the roof covering. At the east end multi-paned glazing flanks a central, blind section; they contain two semi-abstract stained glass representations of St Joseph and the Virgin and Child. The fittings are modest but the open-backed bench seating is attractive and well-made. The flooring is of hardwood blocks laid herringbone-wise.

Heritage Details