Church Of St Luke

Church of St Luke

Church. Built 1858–9 by architect E.H. Shellard. Constructed in coursed squared sandstone with a slate roof. Early English style.

The building comprises a south-west tower with spire, a nave with north and south aisles, and a chancel with a north organ-house and south vestry.

The square tower rises through 5 stages, each distinguished by moulded bands and small angle-buttresses. An extruded stair-turret projects from the north-west corner up to the 4th stage. The south face has a 2-centred arched doorway beneath a trefoil-headed outer arch with small shafts. The 2nd stage contains a small lancet; other stages, including the stair-turret, have small loop-lights. The top 2 stages feature triple-arcading with shafts—the lower stage with narrow lancets, the upper with stone belfry louvres. The corners carry angel gargoyles and octagonal pinnacles. The octagonal broach spire has 2-light lucarnes set between the pinnacles and small single-light lucarnes on the remaining sides.

The 6-bay nave, aisles, and chancel are buttressed with moulded bands encircling the walls: the lowest above the plinth, a second linking window sills, and the topmost linking hoodmoulds. The aisles contain paired lancets with double-chamfered surrounds. The north aisle has a porch in the 2nd bay with a trefoil-headed doorway with shafts and steeply-pitched roof. Continuing east from the north aisle is a gabled organ-house forming a transept to the chancel, with one lancet in each side and a quatrefoil in the gable.

The nave has 6 small circular clerestory windows. Its west end displays 2 tall lancets with shafts, 2 small loop-lights below, and a wheel window above. The chancel, short but almost full height, has a tall stepped triple-lancet window with shafts and hoodmoulds with carved stops. Attached to the south side of the chancel is a small gabled vestry with a trefoil-headed doorway, 2 lancets to the right, a steeply-pitched roof, and a tall side chimney. Most windows retain original geometrical leaded glazing.

Interior: The 6-bay arcades comprise double-chamfered arches on columns with moulded annular caps. The western 3 bays are now partitioned with an upper floor inserted and the choir gallery brought forward to create meeting rooms on both floors. Arch-braced kingpost roof trusses rest on stone corbels. Double-chamfered arches open to the organ chamber and chancel, the latter fitted with an inserted wrought-iron screen. The reredos consists of a 5-bay blind arcaded composition with trefoil tracery.

Original pitch-pine furnishings survive, including pews with doors, numbers, and umbrella racks; a circular pedestal pulpit with trefoiled open arcading; and a matching desk. A dado band of patterned tiles runs along the walls. A square stone font stands on 4 columns. A stained glass War Memorial window is located in the south aisle.