The previous church was built in 1887, and designed by the Lancaster architects Paley, Austin and Paley. Two local industrialists donated £5,000 (equivalent to £700,000 in 2023)[2] each to its cost. The church was built in red brick, and was distinguished by having a bellcote at the east end by a tall, slender spirelet. It was also unusual in that it had narrow aisles, forming passages down the sides of the church. The church was built on a coalfield, and subsequently suffered damage from subsidence, which led to its demolition in 1978.[3] Pollard and Pevsner in the Buildings of England series describe it as having been a "grand" church.[4] Brandwood et al state that the practice designed a number of urban churches around this time, and they consider that this was the most important, with "real character and individuality".[5]
Present church
The new church was converted from a school built in the 1870s. It contains some stained glass dating from about 1889 and from 1923, which was moved from the old church and re-set in the present church.[4]
Brandwood, Geoff; Austin, Tim; Hughes, John; Price, James (2012), The Architecture of Sharpe, Paley and Austin, Swindon: English Heritage, ISBN978-1-84802-049-8
