Christ Church, Bacup

Church in Lancashire, English
53°42′24″N 2°11′37″W / 53.7068°N 2.1935°W / 53.7068; -2.1935OS grid referenceSD 873,233LocationBeech Street, Bacup, LancashireCountryEnglishDenominationAnglicanWebsiteChrist Church, BacupHistoryStatusParish churchArchitectureHeritage designationGrade IIDesignated30 November 1984Architect(s)Sharpe and PaleyArchitectural typeChurchStyleGothic RevivalCompleted1854Construction costOver £3,000SpecificationsMaterialsSandstone rubble, slate roofAdministrationProvinceYorkDioceseManchesterArchdeaconryBoltonDeaneryRossendaleParishChrist Church, BacupClergyVicar(s)Rev D. Woodall

Christ Church is in Beech Street, off Todmorden Road, Bacup, Lancashire, England. It is a former Anglican parish church in the deanery of Rossendale, the archdeaconry of Bolton and the diocese of Manchester.[1] The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.[2]

History

The church was built in 1854, and paid for from the legacy of a local manufacturer, James Heyworth. It was designed by the Lancaster firm of architects Sharpe and Paley. The church cost over £3,000 (equivalent to £360,000 in 2023),[3] and contained seating for 500 people.[4][5] In 2012 it was decided that the church will close, and its congregation will share the premises of the Central Methodist Church.[6] Its last service was held on 26 August 2012, and it was thereafter closed.[7]

Architecture

Exterior

Christ Church is constructed in sandstone rubble with a slate roof. Its architectural style is Gothic Revival. The plan consists of a southwest tower, a four-bay nave with north and south aisles, a porch, and a clerestory, and a two-bay chancel. The tower is in three stages and has diagonal buttresses rising halfway up the tower. At its southeast corner is a polygonal stair turret rising to a greater height than the tower and surmounted by a pinnacled lantern. It has a three-light west window in the lowest stage with smaller three-light windows in the middle stage on the west and south sides. The top stage contains two-light bell openings and at the top is a plain parapet. At the west end of the body of the church are triple two-light windows with a wheel window above them in the gable. At the east end is a triple lancet window.[2]

Interior

The reredos is in stone with blind arcades, crockets, and images of faces. The pulpit is in a similar style.[2][4] The church contains a pair of stained glass windows by Shrigley and Hunt.[4]

Future

After 8 years of closure, the Church of England is currently in the process of selling the building, for the purpose of conversion into offices,[8] to local digital marketing agency GrowTraffic.[9][10]

Planning permission was granted for this redevelopment in April 2023.[11]

See also

  • iconLancashire portal

References

  1. ^ Christ Church, Bacup, Church of England, archived from the original on 29 September 2009, retrieved 27 June 2010
  2. ^ a b c Historic England, "Christ Church, Bacup (1072858)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 10 May 2011
  3. ^ UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  4. ^ a b c Hartwell, Clare; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2009) [1969], Lancashire: North, The Buildings of England, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, p. 90, ISBN 978-0-300-12667-9
  5. ^ Brandwood, Geoff; Austin, Tim; Hughes, John; Price, James (2012), The Architecture of Sharpe, Paley and Austin, Swindon: English Heritage, p. 216, ISBN 978-1-84802-049-8
  6. ^ Cornall, Vanessa (30 March 2012), "End of an era as Bacup's last Church of England church closes", Lancashire Telegraph, Newsquest (Northwest), retrieved 1 June 2012
  7. ^ "Tower details".
  8. ^ "Bacup Christ Church Combined Paper" (PDF). Church of England.
  9. ^ "Christ Church Part 2 - GrowTraffic Now Want To Bring The Church Back Into Use As Offices". Peter Dunn, Facebook.
  10. ^ "About GrowTraffic". Growtraffic.
  11. ^ "Grade II listed church to be transformed into business centre". Lancashire Telegraph. 20 April 2023. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
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