St. Peter’s Church in Birstall – Part 1

 

The west end of St. Peter's church

When planning my day out to Batley and Birstall, I wanted to take advantage of the opening of the Grade II* listed St. Peter’s church for the 2024 Heritage Open Days festival; however, knowing that except for the tower it is essentially a Victorian church, I wouldn’t have made the effort to visit it unless I combined it with the historic architecture of Batley - as seen along Station Road and in the Market Place Conservation Area.

 

The north-east entrance to St. Peter's churchyard

 

Having had a very quick look at Birstall and approaching the north-east entrance to the churchyard, in overcast conditions, my first view was of a large church where the windows, castellated parapets and pinnacles are quite typical of the Perpendicular Gothic style.

 

A view of the north elevation

The remains of a C9 preaching cross have led to suggestions that there could have been a church before the stone built was founded c.1100 by Radulphus de Paganell, according to Historic England (HE), with it being extended by three further phases of building c.1200, c.1300 and c.1490. Except for the tower, with a belfry stage of c.1490 and the lowest two stages dating to the C12, all that is seen to day is the work of W.H. Crossland (1863-1870).

 

Another view of the north elevation

 

The C19 work comprises ashlar masonry using a sandstone that looks quite different to the sandstone used in the school buildings on Kirkgate that I saw when walking down from Market Place in Birstall, which I presume was quarried locally from the local Birstall Rock.

 

A view of the east end

I was keen to get a good look at the interior, so I just walked anticlockwise around the exterior to take general record photographs of the principal architectural elements, but from these the sandstone looks quite yellow in colour and unlike the Thornhill Rock that I had seen in Batley.

 

A detail of the chancel

 

By the time that the church was rebuilt, the railways had become well established and Batley was connected to the quarries working the Thornhill Rock to the south of Morley, the Elland Flags to the east of Halifax and the Rough Rock from Huddersfield. William Crossland who was born in Huddersfield and was based in Halifax, would no doubt have been fully aware of the qualities of these building stones.

 

The Building Stones Database for England map explorer

 

Either side of the east window, which is in the Decorated Gothic style, there are statues of St. Wilfred and a female saint, whose name has completely weathered away along with the nailhead detailing. From my photo, I can’t make out what stone it is, but its highly weathered nature suggests that it might be white Carrara marble rather than Portland stone.

 

Statues on the east end of the chancel

 

Moving round the large yew tree on the north-east corner, it is obvious that the church is built with double aisles, with the east end of the outer aisle having another Decorated Gothic style window, with simple late Perpendicular Gothic style 4-light square headed windows on its south elevation.

A view along the south elevation

 

Arriving at the south porch, which HE describe as having an entrance arch with “3 orders of filleted shafts and vertical bands of fleurons, foliage capitals, and arches incorporating bands of foliage”, I noted that the detailing is still quite sharp.

 

The south porch

 

The yellowish colour of the sandstone is quite apparent and the surface of the ashlar masonry is quite weathered in several places and, especially on the large winged grotesques projecting from the corners of the porch, the highly blackened surface is spalling to revel a fresh surface. Its colour and texture appears very similar to the massive sandstone from the Elland Flags, which I had previously seen earlier in the year in Headingley and the centre of Leeds.

 

A grotesque on the south porch

 

Moving round to the west end, there is a clear difference in the colour of the sandstone ashlar masonry of the double aisles and the sandstone used for the tower which, although quite blackened in places, has a lot more variation and has orange iron staining that is seen in the Birstall Rock.

 

A view of the west end

 

The lower part of the tower, dated to the C12, is built with well squared and coursed walling and there is a slit window on the south and north elevations, The belfry stage (c.1490) is built with much larger and regularly sized blocks and the castellated parapet is set on a corbel table which I had never seen before.

The tower

I finished my quick look at the exterior at the north porch, which has identical detailing to the south porch. With overcast conditions and the detailing not being well lit, I just took a few general photos before entering the church, with 45 minutes to look around before it was due to close.

 

The north porch

 

A Very Quick Look at Birstall

 

A tourist information panel in Birstall

Since arriving at Batley railway station at 10:37 am, I had spent an hour looking at the historic architecture on Station Road and in the Batley Market Place Conservation Area, with the intention of the catching the No. 281 bus to Birstall Retail Park, which was due to depart at 11.41 am. 

 

An extract from the Nos. 281/283 bus timetable

 

When planning my day out, I relied on the timetables on the West Yorkshire METRO website, which do not include a map and, although they list the timing points and main stops on the route, they are not very helpful to a visitor who does not know the area. Looking at Google Map, to locate the position of the bus stops on Wellington Street and the way to Birstall, I assumed that I would need to catch the bus from the Fox's Biscuits stop on the south side. 

The stops for the No. 281 bus shown on the timetable

I didn't see a timetable and when a bus finally arrived 10 minutes later than I had expected, it stated Dewsbury as its destination. With nobody else waiting at the stops on Wellington Street, it was only when the next bus arrived did I hail the bus, only to be told by the driver that the buses to Birstall actually left from the Fox's Biscuits stop on the other side of the road! 

 

Market Place in Birstall

Finally catching my No. 281 bus, I alighted on Low Lane and walked back to Market Place, which the 1854 Ordnance Survey (OS) map shows was at the heart of a settlement that was quite substantial, before the rapid post industrial revolution growth that took place in the region during the second half of the C19. 

 

The 1854 Ordnance Survey map of Birstall

 

Very many of the Victorian buildings remain and, although possessing no great architectural merit in their own right and not one of them being listed, the area around Market Place is quite attractive and these make a significant contribution to the character of Birstall Conservation Area. 

 

The Kirklees Metropolitan Council map of the Birstall Conservation Area

Having arrived in Birstall 45 minutes later than planned, I was very aware that St. Peter's church, which was open for the 2024 Heritage Open Days festival, was due to close at 2 pm so I did not have time to go in search of buildings identified on my British Listed Buildings Photo Challenge.

 

My British Listed Buildings Photo Challenge for Birstall

 

Set at the east end of Market Place is a considerably larger than life bronze statue of Joseph Priestley, the discoverer of oxygen, which was designed by Frances Darlington and erected by public subscription in 1912. According to a report in the Leeds Mercury "The statue represents Priestley in the act of plunging a lighted candle into an inverted jar, the supreme moment of his life, when he made the discovery of oxygen".

 

The statue of Joseph Priestley

 

As always, as a geologist I was particularly interested in the grey granite that was used for the tapering square base. Looking at the polished panel with the description, the large rectangular phenocrysts of white alkali feldspar and the general colouration of the crystalline matrix, show this is characteristic of the Cornubian Batholith, which underlies much of Devon and Cornwall. 

 

A polished panel showing alkali feldspar phenocrysts

 

On Chapel Lane, I noticed a couple of large buildings built with sandstone ashlar and took a couple of general photos and I have since learned that one of these is St. John's Methodist Church (1864), which Historic England (HE) suggest may be by James Simpson - the architect responsible for the Methodist church on Hick Lane in Batley. 

 

Views of St. John's Methodist Church

 

Heading back to Chapel Lane and turning down Market Street, I next stopped to photograph the former Princess Picture Palace (1919), which I am quite surprised is not a listed building, because it has an ornate rounded pediment and has considerable social significance. 

 

The former Palace Picture House

 

Outside Birstall Library, I stopped very briefly to photograph the Poppy Paving by Chris Terry, which the plaque says was laid in 2014 as part of the WW1 Centenary and is made of stone and cobbles. I didn’t examine it closely, but the poppy looks like a Permo/Triassic red sandstone, with Cumbrian volcanic green slate used for the leaves. 

 

The Poppy Paving

 

A large building that was built between 1905 and 1915 is set on the corner of Low Lane and Kirkgate and is shown on the 1922 OS map as a Roman Catholic church, with an adjoining presbytery, but it now appears to have been converted to residential use. 

 

The former Roman Catholic church and adjoining presbytery

 

It is built with rock-faced sandstone walling with ashlar dressings, which is quite dirty and I cannot get a good idea of its colour characteristics. On its west elevation, a statue of a bishop is set into a niche, which is made with a white stone that looks quite weathered when I enlarge the photo, but I cannot tell if it is white Carrara marble or Portland stone. 

 

A statue on the former Roman Catholic church

 

On the opposite side of the road is one of a series of public buildings, which are marked in black and are described on the 1894 edition of the OS map as being schools, but which have since been converted to residential use. 

 

A former school building on Kirkgate

Adjacent to this is the Grade II listed former National School (1818), which is now used by a construction company. At each end, there are large square finials and two more of these are set on the crenellated parapet above the entrance porch. 

 

The former National School

 

To the immediate south-west of this is another single storey building that is part of the later C19 schools described above. It has a steep Welsh slate roof with velux windows and a porch on the south-east corner, with a staircase leading to an entrance to the roof space on the south elevation. 

 

A former school building on Kirkgate

 

To the west of this on Bradford Road is another school building that, as with the others described above, is built with a sandstone that has very distinct orange colouration, which is quite different to the uniformly coloured light brown Thornhill Rock that has been used to build the warehouses and public buildings in Batley. 

 

A former school building on Bradford Road

 

The 1854 OS map shows several quarries in Birstall, which worked Birstall Rock from the Pennine Lower Coal Measures Formation and it is therefore likely that all of these school buildings - the last mentioned having a date of 1885 on the lintel above its entrance – are built with this sandstone.

 

A detail of the former school building on Bradford Road

 

Batley Market Place Conservation Area

 

A detail of the pediment at the Zion Methodist Chapel

Continuing my brief exploration, having had a good look at the old textile warehouses/showrooms on Station Road and the listed buildings on Hick Lane, I walked along Commercial Street to the current commercial centre of Batley.

 

The former Burtons building

The former Burtons building was the only building of any architectural merit and I quickly passed by the various takeaways, nail bars, vape shops and other shops selling cheap goods - a feature of so many run down industrial towns, which once had a thriving economy - with these being omitted from the Batley Market Place Conservation Area (BMPCA).

 

The east and north elevations of Batley Town Hall

 

When planning my day out to Batley and Birstall, I used Google Street View to look at the area around Market Place and, although someone else had already photographed Batley Town Hall, Batley Library, the war memorial and other buildings, this part of Batley looked very attractive and reflects the sense of civic pride that existed in the textile producing centres of West Yorkshire. 

 

A keystone on the north elevation of the town hall

 

According to Pevsner, “Batley has nothing of municipal architecture to boast of. But the principal buildings are at least grouped facing a square, and such a civic open space is a blessing, where mills so much taller and bigger than any civic buildings, close in everywhere”. 

 

The west elevation of the town hall

 

The Classical style town hall was originally the Mechanics' Institute (1854), which was purchased by Batley Corporation in 1874, and then extended in 1905 by Walter Hanstock and Son. Hanstock had previously been in partnership with Michael Sheard and their works includes at least one of the warehouses on Station Road (c.1873), the West Yorkshire Union Bank (1871) on Hick Lane and the Zion Methodist Chapel (1869). 

 

The Zion Methodist Chapel

 

After taking a few photos of the chapel, which Historic England (HE) describe as having giant
Corinthian pilasters and a pediment with an eaves cornice supported on large console brackets and an oculus with scrolled foliage, I crossed over to Market Place. 

 

Nos. 1-12 Market Place

The west side is occupied by Nos.1-12, a terrace of 8 shops (c.1875) that HE describes as being “Built on a curved and sloping site with varied facades arranged A.A.B.B.B.C.D.C“ – to which I have to say that I have absolutely no idea what this means. 

 

Nos. 9 and 11 Market Place

 

Although I only spent a couple of minutes taking a few photos of the northern part of Market Place, my photos of Nos. 9 and 11 show that the details of the first floor windows are the same as those seen on Station Road, and they are surely another example of the work of Sheard and Hanstock. 

 

A sculpture at the steps on Market Place

 

Market Place and Market Square are located on quite steeply rising ground and I was interested to see sculptures next to the steps, which seem to depict rolls and folded cloth and bales of recycled wool – presumably reflecting Batley's shoddy and mungo industry – but a plaque and metal details had been stolen I haven't seen any information about this. 

 

A sculpture at the steps on Market Place

 

Moving on to the Grade II listed Batley Library (1906), which is another building designed by William Hanstock and Son and funded by Andrew Carnegie, I was aware that it wasn’t very long before the No. 283 bus to Birstall was due to arrive and I just took a few general record photos. 

 

Batley Library

 

As with the town hall and the other buildings surrounding the large open area formed by Market Square and Batley Memorial Park, I presume that this is another use of the Thornhill Rock, with rock-faced walling and ashlar for the dressings. 

 

A view up to the clock tower at Batley Library

Looking up to the clock tower from the entrance to the library, although I didn’t photograph any of the details, there are many fine examples of architectural sculpture on the arch above the entrance and on the pediment, which still retain sharp profiles. 

 

The former Christian Brethren Chapel

Continuing along Cambridge Street, set on the brow of the hill, the large imposing Broughton House was my next stop. It was originally built in the second half of the C19 as the Christian Brethren Chapel, before becoming a Methodist chapel that operated until 1971 and then occupied by the Batley and Birstall Royal Air Forces Association Club. 

 

The former Christian Brethren Chapel

Although not a listed building, it makes a significant contribution to the character of the BMPCA but the club closed in 2025. A planning application has since been made to convert it into a mosque and school, with an estimated £200,000 needed to fix the roof and damage caused by leaks. 

 

Batley war memorial

 

Entering Batley Memorial Park, I just took a few general photos of Batley war memorial (1923), which has a bronze statue of an infantryman with a rifle set on a tall massive sandstone column, before returning to Cambridge Street. 

 

Batley war memorial

The Grade II Listed Former Technical School, by Harry Bagshaw Buckley of Batley, is built with rock-faced sandstone walling with ashlar for the dressings. The original building, with large windows that provide plenty of light inside the building. was built in 18993, with the attached Stubley Memorial Wing added c.1900. 

 

Views of the Former Technical school

 

The fenestration seems to have been one of the important aspects of its design but, as with most of the historic architecture that I had encountered since leaving Batley railway station, fine architectural sculpture can be seen – the highlights being the raised lettering to describe both phases of the building and the mermaid above the doorway to the original building. 

 

A mermaid on the Former Technical School

Before leaving the Conservation Area and going to find my bus stop on Wellington Street, I took a few quick snaps of Batley Public Baths (1893) – yet another building by Walter Hanstock. In recent years it had been able to maintain its running costs and, at the time of my visit, it was unused and boarded up and has since been put up for sale.

 

Views of Batley Public Baths