The Prospect Tower and Steps, Chinese Garden is a Grade II listed building in the Staffordshire Moorlands local planning authority area, England. First listed on 20 March 1974. Ornamental garden building. 1 related planning application.

The Prospect Tower and Steps, Chinese Garden

WRENN ID
waning-flagstone-weasel
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Staffordshire Moorlands
Constituency
Staffordshire Moorlands MP: Dame Karen Bradley (Con)
Country
England
Date first listed
20 March 1974
Type
Ornamental garden building
Address
The Prospect Tower and Steps, Chinese Garden, Biddulph
OS grid reference
SJ 892 591
Coordinates
53.12933, -2.1614
Source
Historic England listing

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

Description

The Prospect Tower and steps in the Chinese Garden is an ornamental garden building dating from 1848 to 1860, designed by John Bateman. It is a ruined tower made of random coursed stonework, intentionally finished to look ruinous. The tower is built against a steep embankment and has two stages with a square plan, featuring a battered design at the top of the first stage, which stands approximately 5 meters high. A random spiral of stone steps provides access to the tower. This structure is part of the perambulation of the Chinese Garden, particularly for viewing the Chinese Temple located to the west.

Local climate

The Prospect Tower and Steps, Chinese Garden receives an average of 910 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 69% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 52% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 45 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 87% of listed buildings. Of these, 25 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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  1. The Great Wall of China, Chinese Garden Grade II 23 m
  2. Chinese Bridge, Chinese Garden Grade II 28 m
  3. Egyptian Portal and Two Pairs of Sphinxes Grade II* 29 m
  4. Chinese Temple and Attached Access Tunnel, Chinese Garden Grade II 40 m
  5. The Joss House, Chinese Garden Grade II 43 m
  6. Biddulph Grange Grade II* 92 m
  7. Formal Steps and Approach to Bateman's Study at Biddulph Grange Grade II 92 m
  8. The Alcove and Approach Steps at North End of Lime Avenue Grade II 102 m
  9. Overton Road Entrance to Biddulph Grange Overton Road Entrance to Biddulph Grange; Gates, Gatepiers and Flanking Walls Grade II 253 m
  10. War Memorial in St Lawrence's Churchyard, Biddulph Grade II 290 m