Full Report for Listed Buildings
The list description is not intended to be a complete inventory of what is listed: it is principally intended to aid identification. By law, the definition of a listed building includes the entire building (i) and any structure or object that is fixed to the said building and ancillary to it and (ii) any other structure or object that forms part of the land and has done so since before 1 July 1948, and was within the curtilage of the building, and ancillary to it, on the date on which said building was first included in the list, or on 1 January 1969, whichever was later.
Date of Designation
11/03/1981
Date of Amendment
29/02/1996
Name of Property
Former English Congregational Church
Location
A prominent feature of New Street.
Broad Class
Religious, Ritual and Funerary
History
The English Congregationalists launched an appeal to raise funds for a new church in 1844: an engraving of the proposed church (and as built) is dated 1844, naming the architect as J.Vaughan of Oswestry. No longer used as a church, it is now a shop.
Exterior
Gable facing the street is yellow terracotta; other elevations are local rubble with brick dressings. Slate roof. Wide gable articulated by 3 stepped arches with foliate capitals to shafts and nail-head enrichment to arches. Highest central arch houses doorway and Y-traceried window above, both similarly enriched. Y-traceried windows in outer arches, which are recessed above the plinth. Foliate capitals to outer pilasters, and coping to gable. Similar smaller entrance in gabled porch to the side of the building to the right. Return elevations are blind, but articulated by thin pilaster buttresses. Canted projection to E end has simple Y-traceried windows, the central one blind.
Interior
An undivided space with a gallery carried on cast-iron columns to the W. 4 king-post collar trusses with traceried panels braced and sprung from wall-posts. Shallow canted E end (formerly housing organ), recessed behind arch with foliate capitals and nail-head enrichment. Similar detail to flanking windows, which have stained glass.
Reason for designation
The building retains much of its character even though it is no longer in use as a church. An unusually early example of its style, the building is also notable for the exceptional quality of the terracotta work to the principle elevation.
Cadw : Full Report for Listed Buildings [ Records 1 of 1 ]