Church of the Most Holy Trinity, Dockhead

Introduction

The church is listed at Grade II*. The church was designed to accommodate 490 worshippers.

Architecture and furnishings

The sanctuary has been reordered, probably in the 1970s. The church is built of yellow and red brick in polychrome patterns with some blue brick, and has a slate roof. The church has a longitudinal plan with nave, chancel, short sanctuary and tall passage aisles under a pitched overall roof, and transepts. The exterior is dominated by paired polygonal western towers with the main entrance and a five-light transomed window set in a tall arched recess between them.

The towers have low conical roofs and segmental louvred openings to their top stages. The main entrance has a green slate, square-headed surround with a projecting hood and nine small square openings with quatrefoil glazing. The double entrance doors have large-scale petal decoration. The brickwork of the flank walls has a large interweave pattern to the lower walls and a hexagon pattern above, with red headers on a yellow background.

Semi-circular mullioned windows are placed high in the wall on the north flank; similar windows on the south side, with three five-light windows below. The transept end walls have nine-light segmental headed windows with pent-roofed single storey passages below. The sanctuary walls are blind apart from a single five-light segmental window high in the east wall. The interior has round-headed transverse arches and barrel vaults to each bay, and tall semi-circular headed arcades opening onto passage aisles.

The church has an organ gallery over the entrance vestibule, enclosed by a part-glazed timber screen with small panes of leaded glazing and central doors. The church has parquet floors throughout and all windows are clear-glazed with leaded lights. A raised projecting half-round pulpit of green and buff stone is attached to the north wall of the nave. The altar rail at the base of the sanctuary steps is a low wall of moulded green stone.

The lower walls of the sanctuary are lined with contrasting grey and buff stone with two tiers of pilasters beneath a cornice. A triptych in high relief glazed ceramic by Atri Cecil Brown, installed in 1958, is set into the upper tier over the site of the former high altar. The church has a marble forward altar, with a tabernacle stand and gradine against the east wall, belonging to a post-Vatican II reordering. The chancel includes a pair of timber benches. The church has simple timber bench seating which is probably original.

Music and liturgy

A singing group supports the parish's community liturgy and is open to all regardless of age or experience. The parish's Liturgy Group meets every few weeks and is open to all worshippers.

Parish life

The Readers Group proclaims the Word of God as part of liturgical celebrations, coordinated by the Parish Administrator. The Sacramental Preparation Group runs an annual programme for Reconciliation and Eucharist starting around Christmas. Altar servers must have received First Holy Communion to join.

The Manna Society has run the Manna Day Centre since 1982, supporting homeless people in London. The parish has an important historic link with the Sisters of Mercy, established at Dockhead by Catherine McCauley in 1839.

The parish offers an online time of prayer with the psalms on Mondays. The parish prepares children for baptism, with contact via email for preparation.