Catholic Church of St Joseph

Catholic Church of St Joseph

This Grade II listed church is constructed of red brick under slate roofs, with projecting boarded eaves and simple red brick dressings to small round-headed multi-pane windows. The building comprises a south-east tower and campanile, nave, apsidal chancel, north and south aisles, and a south vestry.

The eastern gable-end facade is the principal elevation. It features a pronounced triangular pediment with pale stone dressings decorated with modillions and dentils, surmounted by a cross finial. A central gabled porch of whitened stone projects forward, supported on tapering round columns with cushion capitals. The porch entrance is a round arch with panelled soffit, flanked by single round-headed lights on open sides. Above a plain tympanum is a flat-headed panelled double door. A large circular window with horizontal and vertical glazing bars sits above the porch. The tower to the left is slightly set back, with two small round-headed windows stacked vertically. The upper stage contains pairs of round-headed louvres to each side, all with tile sills. A pronounced Lombard frieze in pale stone supports a few courses of red brick, above which sits a hipped roof with a tall finial. To the right of the nave, the lean-to north aisle is decorated at its eastern end with a Lombard frieze in red brick, below which is a pair of round-headed lights.

The north and south sides have eight round-headed clerestorey windows set above single-storey lean-to aisles that continue to the western end of the nave. A flat-roofed bay abuts the south side of the tower, with a single light over a flat-headed panelled door. The south aisle contains pairs of round-headed lights, each with a central pier with chamfered angles. Towards the centre of the south elevation is a catslide projection, beyond which is a flat-roofed entrance block that also contains the vestry. The doorway faces east and is flat-headed with a panelled door; to its right is a date stone bearing the architect's name. The north side has a square-headed projection at the angle of the nave and aisle, then pairs of round-headed lights, a flat-headed porch, and a catslide projection, with further pairs of windows beyond.

The western gable end has a leaded dome projecting from the apsidal chancel, beneath which are three single round-headed lights. A projecting stack sits to the right. The ends of the aisles have smaller leaded domes to apsidal-ended altars, also with single round-headed lights.

The interior is basilican in plan. A narthex at the eastern end has blind round arches to each side. Three round-headed doorways lead into the nave, fitted with double panelled half-lit doors and overlights with radial glazing. Above is a gallery with a three-panel front supported on four moulded corbels, with the organ located on the north side. To the left of the narthex front are late twentieth-century double doors leading to a small shop. To the south is a panelled door within a round arch providing gallery access.

The nave has seven-bay arcades consisting of tapering round columns with cushion capitals supporting round arches. Clerestorey windows sit directly above the arches, those at the eastern end positioned above the gallery, all with deeply splayed sills and pink and yellow stained glass featuring IHS and fleur-de-lis motifs. An eight-bay roof spans the nave, with tie-beam trusses supporting a semi-circular brace between vertical struts and further arched braces flanking. The aisles have wood-panelled ceilings and pairs of round-headed lights within large full-height round arches, each pair sharing a central pier with chamfered angles, base, and capital. Hoppers sit at window bases, with pink and yellow stained glass beneath the heads. Pairs of round-headed double doors lead out to each side into the catslide projections, some with blind balustrading to the upper tier. Pews have carved bench ends. Round-headed stoups are positioned at intervals around the walls.

A round moulded chancel arch is supported on tall pilasters with short square capitals. The apsidal chancel has a cornice continuing from the capitals, with stained glass to the three lights depicting biblical figures and flanked by piscinas. A three-tier stepped altar of dark green and white marble stands within, with a matching marble table in front faced with three panels of dark green marble. These are reached by stone steps. Flanking the chancel are smaller apses containing altars behind plain round arches. To the right is a three-tier altar to the Sacred Heart with yellow marble inlay and a piscina in the rear wall. In front is a stone altar rail consisting of round-arched balustrading. Offset to the right is an octagonal stone font with incised quatrefoils on a tall stem. The left altar has no altar rail. Two doors lead south into the vestry.