Church of St Hilary is a Grade II listed building in the Wirral local planning authority area, England. First listed on 20 January 1988. Church. 1 related planning application.

Church of St Hilary

WRENN ID
vacant-minaret-auburn
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Wirral
Constituency
Wallasey MP: Dame Angela Eagle (Lab)
Country
England
Date first listed
20 January 1988
Type
Church
Address
Church of St Hilary, Claremount Road
OS grid reference
SJ 296 921
Coordinates
53.4217, -3.06017
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: related consents · flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The Church of St. Hilary is a church built between 1858 and 1859 by architects W. and J. Hay. It features a stone structure with a slate roof adorned with fish scale bands. The layout includes a nave with aisles beneath a lean-to roof, a crossing tower, transepts, and a chancel that has a north vestry and a south chapel. The four-bay nave is highlighted by three-light segmental-pointed windows situated between buttresses along the aisles, along with gabled porches on the north and south sides that have entrances of one order. The clerestory is fitted with segmental-pointed windows that contain two ogee-headed lights.

The west front showcases an entrance with two orders and dog-tooth moulding, accessed by steps, and features a four-light window with Decorated tracery set between weathered buttresses, as well as two-light aisle windows. The transepts include two windows with two lights and a rose window above, along with two-light east windows. The tower is notable for its octagonal northeast turret that rises above the parapet, with a bell stage that has angle buttresses and paired two-light louvred bell openings, a ball flower cornice, and an embattled parapet with gargoyles. The top stage of the turret has small lights.

The chancel is supported by diagonal buttresses and has a five-light east window, along with two-light windows on the north and south sides. The vestry features a lateral stack and a three-light window, with a similar window above to the east, and an extension that dates to 1923.

Inside, the nave arcades are supported by hexagonal piers that still retain gas pipes, and the roof is arch-braced on wall shafts. The font consists of a bowl on a central pier with four additional piers at the corners. The chancel includes a two-bay organ loft on the north side and a two-bay chapel arcade on the south side. The sedilia features nodding ogee heads, and there is a piscina set in a pinnacle to the south, with another piscina with a nodding ogee head to the north. A timber reredos with intricate carving is present, along with stalls from 1897 that showcase Arts and Crafts ornament and enamel plaques. A timber screen separates the chapel. The church serves as a prominent landmark in northwest Wirral.

Local climate

Church of St Hilary sits in a wetter-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 1,100 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 87% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 78% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 17 freeze-thaw cycles a year, fewer than 83% of listed buildings. Of these, 8 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

More on this building

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  • No EPC on record for this property
  • No sale records on file
  • Related listed building consents — 1 application
  • Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
  • Flood risk assessment
  • Radon risk assessment
  • Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
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Nearby listed buildings

  1. Tower to Former Church of St Hilary to South West of Present Church Grade II 51 m
  2. Old Rectory Grade II 103 m
  3. Roman Catholic Church of English Martyrs Grade II* 365 m
  4. 180, Breck Road Grade II 402 m
  5. Wallasey Water Tower Grade II 1.0 km
  6. Church of St Alban Grade II 1.1 km
  7. Church of St Nicholas Grade II 1.2 km
  8. Wallasey Central Library, including former Earlston House Grade II 1.3 km
  9. Memorial Chapel Grade II* 1.3 km
  10. The Old House Grade II 1.3 km