St James's Presbytery is a Grade II listed building in the Reading local planning authority area, England. First listed on 14 December 1978. Presbytery.

St James's Presbytery

WRENN ID
stony-brass-wagtail
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Reading
Constituency
Reading Central MP: Matt Rodda (Lab)
Country
England
Date first listed
14 December 1978
Type
Presbytery
Address
St James's Presbytery, Forbury Road
OS grid reference
SU 719 736
Coordinates
51.45687, -0.96518
Source
Historic England listing

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

Description

St James's Presbytery, built around 1840 by Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin, is a notable example of Norman revival architecture, which is quite different from Pugin's usual style. The building has undergone significant alterations but is included on the register for the fragments of the Norman Abbey that are incorporated into it. It is two storeys high, constructed of flint with a slate roof, and features Bath stone ashlar quoins and dressings. The facade has four windows on each floor, with the left section altered to include modern casements with drip-moulds and a wide central door. The right section is slightly taller and has mullion and transom windows, with only one window on the ground floor. The left part contains a fragment of a 12th-century billet moulded roll, while the right part has another small fragment. Additionally, there is a large fragment of the Norman Abbey located in the garden to the east.

Local climate

St James's Presbytery sits in a drier-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 730 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 80% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 73% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 34 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 53% of listed buildings. Of these, 14 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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Nearby listed buildings

  1. St James Former School Buildings Grade II 13 m
  2. Church of St James's Grade II 23 m
  3. Wall between Forbury Road and Abbott's Walk to west of St James's Church Grade II 31 m
  4. Archway Connecting Forbury Gardens to Abbey Ruins. Including Retaining Walls Flanking Path to Abbey Ruins Grade II* 32 m
  5. 11 and 12, Abbot's Walk Grade II 43 m
  6. 10, Abbot's Walk Grade II 49 m
  7. Shelter at north-east corner of Forbury Gardens Grade II 56 m
  8. Reading Abbey Ruins Grade I 58 m
  9. Anglian Cross Grade II 67 m
  10. The Plummery Wall Grade II 83 m