Roman Catholic Church Of St Charles Borromeo And Attached Presbytery

The Roman Catholic Church of St Charles Borromeo, together with its attached presbytery, was built in 1858 by JG Weightman, ME Hadfield and George Goldie. A lady chapel was added in 1888, with further alterations in 1918-22 and a north chancel chapel in 1940.

The church is constructed of coursed rock-faced millstone grit with ashlar dressings, and has Welsh slate roofs with coped gables, kneelers and cross finials. It is designed in the Gothic Revival style. The building comprises a south-west tower, a nave with north and south aisles and a north porch, and a chancel with north and south chapels. A presbytery is attached to the south-east.

The tower has a polygonal stair turret and three stages with round windows to the south and paired lancets above, in a pointed arch opening. It features pointed arch doorways with plank doors and elaborate iron hinges, a small lancet above, and single two-light bell openings on each face, topped with an ashlar parapet. The west front of the nave has small lancets and, above them, two tall lancets with a carved figure under a gabled canopy, surmounted by a circular window with trefoil tracery. The north front features a gabled porch with a pointed arch doorway, double plank doors, iron hinges, and a series of double lancet windows in pointed arch surrounds, along with six circular clerestory windows. The south front has a triple lancet window, a gabled confessional and further double lancets with six circular clerestory windows above. The chancel has two circular clerestory windows on each side, and three tall lancets to the east. The presbytery, attached via a covered walkway, is a double-gabled building with clustered stacks, a porch and windows incorporating mullions and transoms.

Inside, the church is plastered. Five-bay nave arcades have round piers with cushion capitals and simple bases. A large chamfered chancel arch is present. The nave roof features paired rafters with alternate arched braces resting on carved stone corbels, while the chancel roof is ceiled. Fittings include a large freestone and marble reredos with niches containing carved figures under crocketed and pinnacled canopies, and gilt angels. A stone altar has marble columns and carved angels flanking the crown of thorns. A stone polygonal pulpit with carved scenes, supported on marble shafts, dates from 1894. There is also a stone font on a pedestal with claws. Many of the wooden fittings are from the 1930s and the 1950s. Stained glass in the south aisle windows is by Mayer & Co of Munich.