Christ Church, Heaton Norris

Christ Church, Heaton Norris
Tower of Christ Church, Heaton Norris Tower of Christ Church, Heaton Norris
Christ Church, Heaton Norris Location in Greater Manchester
OS grid reference	SJ 889 908
Location	Wellington Road, Heaton Norris, Stockport, Greater Manchester
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Website	Churches Conservation Trust
Architecture
Functional status	Redundant
Heritage designation	Grade II
Designated	10 March 1975
Architect(s)	William Hayley
Architectural type	Church
Style	Gothic Revival (Early English style)
Groundbreaking	1844
Completed	1846
Construction cost	c. £7,000 (equivalent to £605,000 in 2021)
Specifications
Materials	Sandstone, Welsh slate roofs

Christ Church consists of the remains of a redundant Anglican church in Wellington Road, Heaton Norris, Stockport, Greater Manchester, England. Only the tower and part of the walls of the aisles survive. They are located on the crest of a hill on the main road linking Stockport with Manchester. The church remains are recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building, and are under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.

History

The church was built in 1844–46 on land donated by Wilbraham Egerton of Tatton Park. It cost about £7,000 (equivalent to £605,000 in 2021), and was a Commissioners' church, the Church Building Commission providing a grant of £500 towards its building. It was designed by the Manchester architect William Hayley. As originally built, it consisted of a nave, north and south aisles, north and south transepts, a chancel, and a west tower with a spire.

By the 1970s the fabric of the church was in very poor condition, including the effects of dry rot. Attempts were made to convert it into a centre for the use of the community, but these were unsuccessful, and in 1977 it was badly damaged by a fire. Following this, it was demolished apart from the tower and spire, and parts of the adjoining walls. The foundations of the other walls have been preserved to show its original plan. None of the fittings or furniture have survived; they were either destroyed in the fire or have been stolen. The five clock bells, made by Warner in 1896, were stolen in 1977. The church was declared redundant on 20 July 1973, and the remains of the church were vested in the Trust on 23 May 1979.

Architecture

Christ Church is constructed in yellow sandstone with a Welsh slate roof. Its architectural style is Early English. The tower is in four stages, and it has a tall, slender spire. On the west side of the lowest stage is a portal, and above this in the next stage is a west window with plate tracery. On the north and south sides of this stage are paired lancet windows. In the third stage are circular openings that formerly housed the clock faces and in the top stage are paired bell openings. On the summit is a pierced parapet, with tall pinnacles at the corners and smaller intermediate pinnacles. In the Buildings of England series, it is stated to be Hayley's "most ambitious surviving work".

External features

The churchyard contains the war graves of five soldiers of World War I.

See also

• List of churches preserved by the Churches Conservation Trust in Northern England