Roman Catholic Church of St Thomas Aquinas and St Stephen Harding and Presbytery

Roman Catholic Church of St Thomas Aquinas and St Stephen Harding and Presbytery

A Roman Catholic church and presbytery designed by Edmund Kirby and completed in 1886, with sanctuary fittings added in 1896. The building is constructed of cream-coloured Wollerton bricks with close red Ruabon brick banding and dressings, set on a red brick plinth. The roofs are covered with brown tiles with red ridge tiles. The architecture follows the Early English Gothic style.

The church is oriented north-west to south-east, though liturgical compass directions are used in describing it. The plan comprises an aisleless nave and canted apsidal sanctuary under a single roof. A two-storey presbytery with cellar stands on the east side of the church, attached to the east end of the nave's south elevation by a single-storey link block containing the sacristy. A porch was added to the west end of the south elevation in the 1960s.

The west gable wall facing the road contains three tall lancet windows with red brick surrounds and moulded brick hoodmoulds. The windows feature diamond and square leaded glazing in clear and blue glass. Full-height buttresses flank each corner, with two smaller buttresses between the windows. A small cross in a circle finial crowns the gable apex.

The south elevation is partially obscured by the 1960s porch. The original pointed-arch doorway with a chamfered and moulded red brick surround now lies within the porch, fitted with a modern timber and glazed door; the original timber door has been relocated to the porch entrance. To the right are four bays divided by buttresses. The first, second and third bays contain paired lancet windows—those in the first bay separated by the porch's east wall. The fourth bay, narrower than the others, has a single lancet. All windows have red brick surrounds with moulded brick hoodmoulds. A single-storey block containing the sacristy and linking the church to the presbytery is attached at the right-hand end of this elevation.

The canted apsidal sanctuary is fitted with diagonal buttresses and three cinquefoil windows in red brick with moulded brick hoodmoulds. Its south side is blind, obscured by the sacristy roof. The north side features two lancet windows. The north elevation, built close to the boundary and not visible, is similar to the south elevation with paired lancet windows.

The presbytery and sacristy are constructed of cream brick with close red brick banding and plinth coursing matching the church. The two-storey presbytery spans two bays, with the entrance doorway to the left and a projecting gabled bay to the right. The wide doorway has a segmental-arched head with a panelled and glazed door, glazed side lights, and overlight with square leaded glazing, set beneath a pitched tiled doorhood. Above is a low, steeply-pitched tile roof with a wide red brick stack built against the gable wall and projecting through the tiled sacristy roof. The right-hand bay has a canted bay window on the ground floor with a pitched tiled roof, and a segmental-arched window on the first floor with red brick surround and a two-over-two pane sash frame. The gable features timber bargeboards, and a wide red brick ridge stack is set back on the roof. The sacristy has a single segmental-arched window to the left and a three-light window to the right with red brick mullions and three segmental heads, featuring diamond and square leaded glazing. The side and rear elevations of the presbytery continue the red brick banding. Windows have segmental-arched heads and two-over-two or one-over-one pane sashes. The left bay to the rear has a half-hipped roof with catslide to the right-hand side; the right bay has a gablet, also with catslide to the right-hand side.

Interior

The aisleless nave is plastered and painted white with timber dado panelling and angled pews. It has an open roof with closely-spaced common rafters with collars and struts supporting candelabra of suspended iron rings from which five octagonal lanterns hang. The three left-hand windows of the south elevation contain stained glass, including two Second World War memorial windows and one memorial window to a wife of a Clifford, who died in 1948. The right-hand window of the north elevation is also a Second World War memorial window. Between the paired windows and in the north-west corner are blind pointed-arch niches containing oval relief Stations of the Cross in pottery. A large pointed arch chancel arch at the east end is flanked by two pointed-arch statue niches: St Mary and Baby Jesus to the left and St Joseph to the right. The moulded arch frames and dado are decorated with painted foliate stencils.

The small canted apsidal sanctuary is richly decorated throughout, with a timber-panelled dado and painted and stencilled walls. Saints are painted on the ceiling. The blind south wall displays six roundels showing scenes from the lives of the patron saints. The three cinquefoil windows contain stained glass, whilst the two lancet windows in the north wall are both First World War memorial windows. The altar is constructed of alabaster with elaborate Gothic design incorporating angels beneath pinnacled canopies. The Caen stone reredos features Gothic design with statues beneath pinnacled spire canopies, painted panels, and an inbuilt tabernacle with a gold and jewelled door.

The presbytery porch has small diamond-set floor tiles in red and black. The staircase features moulded timber newels, hand rails, and turned balusters. Ground-floor reception rooms have moulded cornices, and moulded door architraves are found throughout with six-panelled doors on the ground floor and four-panelled doors on the first floor. The front room contains a grey marble mantelpiece with an inscribed cross motif.

The modern porch at the south-east end of the south elevation is not considered of special architectural or historic interest and is excluded from the listing.