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