Roman Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception and St Dominic

Roman Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception and St Dominic

A Roman Catholic church built between 1852 and 1854 by Charles Hansom, and completed between 1861 and 1863 by Gilbert Blount. The church is constructed of stone with a slate roof.

The building is aligned liturgically east to west and comprises a nave with north and south aisles, a small tower at the western end, two transepts, and a sanctuary at the eastern end with a projecting apse and ambulatory. The church is joined to the adjacent convent on its northern side.

The church is a large structure in the Gothic style of the late 13th century, dominated by its tall nave with sweeping slate roof. The nave clerestory is lit by six spherical triangle windows, each containing three trefoil openings. On the southern elevation, the south aisle features six tall pointed-arch traceried windows with buttresses between them; the westernmost window is larger than the others. The church is entered through a small tower, originally intended to be larger, which is capped with a pyramidal roof. The main door sits beneath a tall pointed hood with carved decoration. The western elevation of the tower contains a tall pointed window in a deep reveal and a projecting stair. The west end of the nave has a gabled projection beneath a large spherical triangle window with intricate tracery.

At the eastern end, an apse projects from the southern side of the sanctuary adjacent to the large south transept. It features blind panel arcades with cusped heads beneath a crenellated parapet and conical roof. Adjacent in the boundary wall is a stone cross memorial to soldiers and sailors of the congregation who fell in the First World War. The east elevation has two projecting gables: the sanctuary gable contains a large five-light east window, while the northern gable, which contains the organ loft, features a large circular window with five quatrefoils. Here the church joins the adjacent convent.

The interior is reached through the main entrance in the tower, which leads up modern stairs into the narthex of 2002. Beyond lies the nave with tall six-bay arcades featuring high pointed arches springing from carved capitals on quatrefoil piers. Between the arches are corbels with carved angels supporting the tall timber roof. The nave and side aisles contain 20th-century pews. Both aisles have chapels at their eastern ends with elaborately carved altars and reredos and stencilled decoration, restored in 2002. In the angles between the nave arcades and the crossing arch are elaborately carved niches containing statues. The crossing contains a forward altar with transepts on either side. The south transept houses the chest tomb of Bishop Ullathorne from 1889 by Joseph Hansom, featuring quatrefoil panels with shields, lettering to the cornice, and the bishop's effigy. The south transept also contains a richly carved altar and reredos.

The sanctuary contains the high altar standing before an elaborately carved reredos with statues of Our Lady and St Dominic in pinnacled niches at each end, a central canopy above the tabernacle, and flanking panels depicting the Assumption of Our Lady and the death of St Dominic. To the right of the altar is an apse with a rib-vaulted ceiling supported on angel corbels and open pointed arches with ornate capitals. Between the arches are ornate metal railings. The apse contains a further altar and reredos. North of the sanctuary, beyond an arcade of tall pointed arches, is the nuns' choir containing collegiate seating and an organ chamber. Above the door giving access to the convent beyond is a gallery for sick or indisposed members of the nuns' community.