Hanley St Lukes Church Of England Aided Primary School Infant Building

School. Built in 1893 with a later addition to the right dating from approximately 1960-1969. Designed by R. Scrivener and Sons of Hanley, the architects to the Hanley School Board, with T. Godwin and Sons of Hanley as contractors. Interior tiles are probably by Minton Hollins.

The building is constructed in reddish brown brick in Flemish bond with moulded blue brick copings to the plinth and string course, moulded terracotta tile dressings to the eaves and stacks, ashlar voussoirs and pargetting in the gables, and plain tile roofs. The front central range is hipped to the left with glazing to the hall roof. Tall brick stacks with moulded cornices are positioned at the angles between ranges at front and rear. The style is Vernacular Revival.

The building occupies a sloping site with a plan comprising a central main hall surrounded by classrooms and cloakrooms, expressed as a central single tall storey range with a lower one-and-a-half storey range to the front and a single tall storey on a basement to the rear. Ranges at right angles to the main block stand to either side, with a single tall storey to the front and accommodation on a basement to the rear.

The front elevation has three bays arranged as 1-4-1, with outer bays breaking forward (that to the left more prominently) and featuring gables with pargetting. The left gable incorporates the inscription H.S.B. (Hanley School Board). The centre range has two gabled attic roof dormers with similar pargetting. The entrance, positioned off-centre left, is within an angled porch and has an 8-panel door with a divided fanlight and surround with voussoirs.

The end ranges feature wide, tall tripartite windows. The left range has three 6/6 sashes with pilaster strips between and a divided wide cambered arched multi-pane overlight with voussoirs to the arch. The right range has a central pair of 4/6 sashes with fanlight incorporating central circular glazing bars, flanked by narrow tall 4/16 sashes with fanlights, all with voussoirs. The central range displays 4/4 sashes and 3/3 sashes all with blind fanlights with pargetting and arches with keystones, and another 1/1 sash. Casement windows serve the attics. The left and rear elevations have similar tripartite windows and gables with pargetting, one to the rear incorporating the date.

Interior: The entrance hall, main hall and classrooms feature extensive fine tiling to the dado in cream, buff, white, dark red, brown and dark green glazes. The dado incorporates panels of embossed tiles with a variety of patterns and is surmounted by moulded tiles, set close together without grout. Above the dado in the main hall on two sides are glazed partition walls with panes of coloured glass, with sliding part-glazed doors to classrooms. The main hall has eight bays and a part-glazed roof with false hammer-beam collar-truss featuring an upper king strut. Clerestory lights are positioned between some classrooms. Classrooms retain fitted slate boards in moulded tile surrounds and fitted cupboards with 4-panel doors. Tobins inlet ventilators are fitted to some rooms, while the attics have gas jets.

The school stood close to the Minton Factory. Many of the tiles are similar in design to those illustrated in the Minton China Works catalogue dating from approximately 1880-1890. The school interior retains an unusually fine collection of embossed tiles. It was originally known as the Wellington County Infants' School.