Building record MDR13270 - St Andrew's Church, Barrow Hill, Staveley

St Andrew's Church, Barrow Hill, was built in 1893-5 in Early English style by Parker & Unwin to provide a separate building for the church, which originally shared the 1856 school building nearby. It was consecrated on April 29 1895. (1) St Andrew's Church is a red brick building with a slate roof. The windows are of double stilted pointed arch with brick dressings. The south elevation has a cantilevered bell-cote. St Andrew's Church creates a striking picture within Station Road, reinforced by a clever use of brickwork around its windows. (2) St Andrew's Church was assessed for listing in 2012. The church was the first architectural commission to have been undertaken by Parker and Unwin; however, although it is significant for this reason, it was not considered to be of sufficient architectural interest to warrant listing. (3) St Andrew's Church was re-assessed for listing in 2014. St Andrew’s Church was built in 1894-5 to the designs of Raymond Unwin (1863-1941) with interior fixtures and fittings by Barry Parker (1867-1947). The church was the first major architectural commission undertaken by Unwin as well as the first collaboration between himself and Parker. Together they went on to become internationally respected pioneers of town planning, best known for producing the master plans for Letchworth Garden City and Hampstead Garden Suburb. The church has been subject to numerous alterations, including the addition of an upper floor over the porch in 1936 to create a new organ chamber; the re-cladding of the roof with concrete tiles in the 1950s; the rendering of the porch and rear elevation; and the blocking up of the archway to the baptistery as part of the provision of lavatory facilities in 2010. The small village church is constructed of red brick laid in English bond with red-brick dressings under a roof re-clad in concrete tiles. It has a cruciform plan, orientated north-south, with a projecting entrance porch and transepts under catslide roofs. All the corners have angle buttresses. The main body of the church is five window bays wide, divided by Romanesque buttresses with off-sets. Each bay is lit by paired lancets in window surrounds which have a single roll-moulding. The interior is simply furnished, and the main body of the church is a light, single space without arcades. The four-bay, crown post roof has ogee-shaped braces supporting the tie-beams and hammer posts, and is clad in panels of diagonally laid timbers. The chancel has a simple hammer beam roof with collar rafters, painted white. The church furniture and fittings include Parker’s oak font and lectern, fixed pews, a second-hand oak pulpit, a Holt organ, stained glass by Shrigly and Hunt and William Morris & Co., an altar (since relocated to the Lady Chapel), and a mosaic reredos made by Unwin to the designs of Parker. The building was still not recommended for listing. It remains, however, within the Barrow Hill Conservation Area, and is included in the tentative local list under development. (4) The church of St Andrew, Barrow Hill was designed by Unwin and Parker. (5)