St Andrew's Roman Catholic Church, Columshill Road, Rothesay

St Andrew's Roman Catholic Church, Columshill Road, Rothesay

Designed by Reginald Fairlie and built in 1923, this is a near-symmetrical Grade A listed church of striking Byzantine character. The building presents a two-storey, three-bay nave-and-aisles form with two-storey, single-bay piended wings flanking the entrance. Single-storey, eight-bay lean-to side-aisles run the length of the nave beneath a ten-bay clerestory. Single-storey pitched side chapels project at the south-east and south-west corners, creating an underlying cruciform plan. A single-storey cloister adjoins the building, with a harled L-plan priest's house and sacristies attached to the south-east.

The structure is predominantly concrete with crushed red sandstone facing that creates the appearance of coursed red ashlar, finished with polished dressings. A chamfered plinth runs around the base. Corbelled eaves sit beneath the aisles, while corniced eaves mark the second storey. Recessed round-arched window and door openings feature stop-chamfered surrounds with angled springers, flush voussoirs, and chamfered cills throughout. The clerestory windows above are tripartite round-arched openings.

The north (entrance) elevation is the architectural showpiece. An arcaded entrance comprises a single window set in an architraved surround at the centre, flanked by two-leaf boarded timber doors with cast-iron hinges and round-arched fanlights. Foliate frieze detailing adorns the flanking pilasters. Three single windows are centred in the apex at first-floor level, with angled springers, and a raised crucifix is positioned above. Single windows at first-floor level sit within piended towers to the outer left and right.

The west (Columshill Street) elevation displays single windows at ground level equally spaced between advanced angled buttresses. Above these, tripartite clerestory openings occupy seven bays. A projecting tower to the outer left contains single windows at both floors. A projecting side-chapel to the right of centre has a single window at ground level and is supported by regularly disposed buttresses and arcaded corbelling beneath the eaves. To the outer right, a recessed bay contains a single window at ground level, with tripartite clerestory glazing in three recessed bays above (marking the sanctuary). A corbelled frieze runs along this section. The single-storey solid cloister wall recesses to the outer right, with a round-arched timber-panelled door in the penultimate bay to the outer left. This door is framed by engaged octagonal columnar reveals with cushion capitals, flanked by single windows. Narrow slit-openings occupy the remaining five bays to the right. The priest's house stands to the south and the cloister garden to the east.

Predominantly leaded glazing lights the interior, with stained windows in the south (sanctuary) and a single stained window centred in the north elevation. The roof is covered in graded grey slate with raised stone skews and replacement rainwater goods.

The interior is dominated by a six-bay colonnaded nave with coursed red ashlar facing (slightly droved). Moulded bases and capitals sit atop regularly disposed columns. Small bipartite aisle openings at ground level feature cushion capitals. An ambulatory continues from the aisles around the sanctuary. Original timber pews remain in situ, and a timber-panelled balcony spans the north end. A large round-arched opening opens to the sanctuary, where a dogtooth- and chevron-moulded oak screen stands. Decorative cast-iron gates flank the side-chapels, and a timber-panelled pulpit occupies the south-east. Cast-iron gates protect the north font chapel, flanked by timber-panelled doors. The nave is roofed in boarded timber with kingpost trusses, while the side-aisles are covered by boarded timber lean-to roofs. A short colonnaded passage leads from the east aisle to a right-angled cloister and adjoining L-plan block, which houses the priest's accommodation to the south and sacristies to the east.

The priest's house features a timber-panelled door in the re-entrant angle facing north, set in a roll-moulded door-surround. Single windows occupy the remaining bays to the west and south. The eaves are slate-hung with a slight bell-cast profile. Coped ridge stacks rise at the south and east ends, with various circular cans punctuating the roof.

The boundary wall to Columshill Street is constructed of coped ribbon-pointed rubble with regularly disposed red ashlar block detailing. Square-plan red ashlar gatepiers mark the outer left and right boundaries, each topped with tiered caps.