William Temple Memorial Church

SJ 88 NW 1775/1/10000

RINGWAY Wythenshawe SIMONSWAY William Temple Memorial Church

II Church. 1964-1965. G.G. Pace. Brick (a mixture of blue, red and brown). Sweeping pitched roof, originally of copper and now with pale green coating. Steel frame. Some reinforced concrete including unpainted concrete beam along top of walls. Rectangular plan organised on the diagonal with the sanctuary in one corner and in the other a chapel, enclosed in a funnel-shaped skin of painted blockwork and shuttered concrete.

Low perimeter walls and low pitched sweeping roof rising to tall gables with vertical strip windows in irregular patterns. Dormers to roof. All windows with small leaded panes, those to the dormers now protected externally by plastic sheets. Slim tower with monopitch roof from which prominent gutter spout projects above weekday chapel.

Interior with exposed pink brick and exposed reinforced concrete skin and black steel frame perforated by hexagons, supporting timber boarded roof. Polygonal sanctuary with altar raised on three steps. Original light timber altar, and behind this matching timber cross and semi-circular linked row of matching timber seats, terminating in a pair of blue brick piers. Matching priest's chair and pair of matching lecterns of timber and black metal. Altar rail of chunky light timber on black metal paired supports. Six tall black metal candlesticks, also original. Black metal cylindrical lights, also original and distinctively in the manner associated with Pace.

Font is placed between sanctuary and chapel, within triangular black metal frame which rises to the roof. Font is a concrete cylinder with semi-circular concavities at the foot, and with black metal cover with symbolic dove motif. Organ, also painted black, is placed against the outside wall of the weekday chapel. Reused timber benches, stripped. Weekday chapel with matching light timber altar, altar rail, pair of candlesticks, and suspended cross.

An impressive and original church which was liturgically advanced for its time and contains a full set of Pace fittings.

Listing NGR: SJ8252886786