Former Union Bank of Manchester, 5 South Parade

The former Union Bank of Manchester, built in the Edwardian Mannerist style, is a rectangular building situated on the south side of South Parade. It is three storeys high with an attic, originally containing a banking hall on the ground floor and offices and residential accommodation above. A secondary entrance is located on the King Street side elevation, leading to a staircase at the rear of the building.

The front elevation features three bays and a central square tower with a dentil cornice and an octagonal stone lantern, which originally had a leaded cupola and a missing finial. The lantern is flanked by four large, seated female allegorical figures. The ground floor has a rusticated granite plinth and a smooth granite band to sill level. A central round-arched doorway is accentuated by a moulded hoodmould and a large keystone with heavily chamfered granite reveals, leading to fielded panel double doors with a lintel and semi-circular overlight. Large rectangular windows with decorative glazing bars are positioned on either side of the doorway. The first and second floors are articulated by giant pilasters culminating in segmental pediments on either side of the central tower. Rectangular first-floor casements with glazed double doors open onto shallow balconies featuring curved iron balustrades. A circular stone plaque, likely originally displaying the bank's name, sits above the central casement, set within an elongated doorcase of engaged columns with a broken-base triangular pediment. Above this pediment is a relief carving of two allegorical figures representing Justice, one holding scales and the other a sword, seated on either side of a small circular window framed with a laurel wreath. A narrow rectangular window is present within the tower, featuring an elongated keystone and dentils. Round-headed second-floor windows in the two outer bays have aprons carved with Art Nouveau cartouches. Seated on the heads of these windows are further allegorical figures representing the Arts: a pair depicting an artist with a palette and brush and a musician with a lyre, and a pair depicting an architect holding a model of a building resembling the bank, and a sculptor holding a small statue. Shields bearing a coat of arms depicting three diagonal stripes and a sailing ship are positioned between the figures. Small casement windows are set within the segmental pediments above.

The east side elevation is similarly detailed with giant pilasters. It comprises three storeys with two single-storey bays to the left. A doorway in the left-hand bay has a granite architrave, and a square casement window above is flanked by a giant dentil and an elongated cartouche bearing the initials "UBM" on a ribbon.

The former banking hall retains two square columns and a pilaster faced with dark grey marble, now partially painted, alongside a modern bar counter. Two front rooms on the first floor feature painted metal beams and are supported by columns, with a chimney breast in each room (fireplaces have been removed). The landing incorporates a concrete dogleg staircase with plain metal balustrades leading to the upper floors. The residential accommodation has not been inspected. The basement contains a strong room with both a solid strong-room door and an inner iron-bar door.