Church Of St Catherine

The Church of St Catherine is a red-brick building with stone dressings and slate roofs, constructed in two phases in 1902 and 1932, designed by Frank Freeman of R. Knill Freeman. It is built in the Perpendicular style, featuring buttresses, some with set-offs, and coped gables with finials. The church comprises a chancel and nave as a single space, with a north chapel, a south transept, a south vestry, aisles, and a south-west porch. The east end has a five-light window, with a blank north wall to the chancel. A three-light window is present at the east end of the north chapel, along with further three-light windows to the north. The clerestory has paired two-light windows, while the aisles feature five-light windows under wide Tudor arches. The south vestry has three-light windows to the east, with a door to the south connecting to the south transept, which itself has a three-light window above a pair of three-light windows – similar to those in the vestry. A corbelled-out bellcote sits at the gable apex. The south porch is characterized by a battlemented parapet and a low pyramidal roof, with small lancet windows. A seven-light window is located at the west end.

The interior features a chancel with a boarded hammerbeam roof, a carved reredos and altar front, and a fine and unusual set of choir stalls and communion rails in an Art Nouveau style. Stained glass is found in the east window. An elaborately carved pulpit and lectern are also present; the lectern notably depicts a pelican standing on her nest feeding her young. The nave has a boarded roof with tie beam trusses. A recent partition divides the nave, but a glazed upper section maintains a view to the west window. West-end panelling contains two large, extremely fine glazed faience panels, serving as a memorial to Catherine Ainsworth. One panel depicts the flower garden at the Ainsworth home, the other showing a scene of fire and destruction. Various windows contain panels of stained glass.

The church’s design and fittings are particularly noteworthy, representing two building phases directed by Frank Freeman. The foundation stone was laid in 1897, with the nave constructed in 1902. The chancel initially remained unfinished; a project drawing from 1905 survives, but was not followed. A subsequent drawing, completed in 1931 and including the chapel, organ chamber, and vestry, was implemented, with the church finished the following year.