A simple and economical church of the 1960s built from designs by Arthur Farebrother & Partners using the Lanner system of construction.

The mission was founded in 1916 and was initially served by a curate from Guardian Angels, Bury. The congregation worshipped in the chapel of the Tottington convent of the Sisters of Charity in Holly Mount.  The population of Tottington began to expand in the 1950s with the building of new housing estates and in 1963 the present site was purchased and a new church built, using the Lanner system of laminated timber trusses.  The building cost only £14,500 and was opened in 1964. The church was built at the time of the Second Vatican Council, but its liturgical arrangements were conventional; the altar rails and large high altar have subsequently been removed or modified. The presbytery was built in 1969 (architects T. Keith McCann Associates of Manchester).

Description

The church is a simple modern structure comprising a nave under a steeply-pitched roof, a simple sanctuary and a small Lady Chapel on the (liturgical) north side, with a large northeast sacristy which doubles as a meeting room.  The exterior walls are faced with buff-coloured brick, the roof is covered in tiles.  The entrance front has a recessed centre with a full-height six-light window above the central entrance. The side walls are of five bays, with large full-height windows on the south side. The short sanctuary has a window on each side and a blind brick east wall. The windows have been replaced in UPVC.

Inside the church the laminated timber trusses which form the main structure are exposed, rising from floor level with glazing between. All the windows are clear-glazed. The underside of the roof is boarded.  There is a west gallery, glazed beneath to form a vestibule.  The rear wall of the sanctuary is of patterned facing brick, with a crucifix and a timber altar canopy.

Heritage Details