Roman Catholic Church of St Mary on the Quay

This Roman Catholic church, dedicated to St Mary on the Quay, was built between 1839 and 1843, designed by Richard Shackleton Pope. It is a building of group value, recognized for its architectural and historical significance.

The church is constructed from limestone ashlar, with modern roofing materials. Internally, the fittings are a combination of timber, stone, and marble. The building follows a cruciform plan, with the sanctuary located at the west end, oriented towards the ritual east.

The church’s exterior incorporates the Greek Revival style, drawing inspiration from the Lysicratid monument in Athens. A prominent hexastyle portico of Greek Corinthian columns, resting on a raised, vermiculated stylobate, forms the main entrance. The entablature bears the inscription “VIVAT CHRISTUS REX” and is topped with a stone cross. The Corinthian columns are deeply fluted. A distyle-in-antis inner porch is accessed by two converging staircases. The central doorway is framed by a battered architrave and cornice, with simpler doorways in the returns, each topped with a six-over-six pane timber sash window. Set-back flanking blocks feature rusticated walls with recessed areas between paired Doric pilasters, containing low doorways. A statue of the Madonna and Child is fixed within the recess on the right side. The rusticated walls project to the street, connected to short continuations of the stylobate. Inscribed on the front face of the stylobate is "CHURCH OF ST MARY ON THE QUAY," accompanied by a bronze memorial plaque commemorating the service and sacrifice of men from St Mary’s School and Congregation during the First World War. The transepts are each topped with a pediment, while the side aisles feature five bays, each containing tall, narrow, square-headed windows with glazing bars.

Inside, the five-bay nave is illuminated by tall, narrow windows with timber margin glazing. Modern timber pews occupy the nave, and moulded doorways are set below the south windows. The chancel is top-lit, with a decorative ceiling featuring gilded plasterwork and dentil cornicing. A highly ornate altar with a domed tabernacle, designed by J.F. Bentley, stands at the rear of the chancel, set upon a parquet veneered, stepped floor. The north transept, serving as a side chapel, features a marble font with a timber lid and wrought-ironwork designed by G.E. Street. The south transept is also arranged as a side chapel.

A gallery at the ritual west end is supported by two fluted cast-iron Doric columns. Stone winder stairs provide access to the gallery, from both sides and from the side doors within the portico. These stairs feature decorative ironwork gates and grilles, contained within panelled vestibules. The gallery doors include a piscina set in the wall on one side. Five rows of raked, carved timber pews with hinged kneeling rests furnish the nave. The nave ceiling exhibits a rectangular design with roundel motifs, incorporating fixings for the lighting. Above the chancel arch, the inscription "AD MAIOREM DEI GLORIAM" is painted.