Our Lady Help of Christians

Introduction

Built in 1966-7 by Richard Gilbert Scott of Giles Scott, Son and Partner, the church features coloured glass windows by John Chrestien.

History

In 1965, after raising further funds, the Diocese tried again, and Richard Gilbert Scott drew up new plans. This church was Richard Gilbert Scott's second church, and the first he built entirely to his own designs and to a central plan. Timothy Dinan, then parish priest, first commissioned drawings from Adrian Gilbert Scott in 1962, but the Diocese rejected these as too costly and over-ambitious. The church is listed at Grade II*.

Architecture and furnishings

The church has a reinforced concrete frame in-filled with Flemish bond brickwork and a copper-coated felt roof covering. The church has a 'T'-shaped plan with octagonal baptistry and Lady Chapel in the angles. The altar is set in the central crossing under the open roof, whose upward curved ribs resemble swept curtains. The church has a low, concrete sign on a brick base to the right of the entrance, as shown on Scott's plans.

The exterior has low brick walls and exposed concrete beams, over-sailed by jagged-edge porch and dominated by a soaring roof with ribs curving upwards forming a broad central tower. The Baptistry and Lady Chapel have identical bell-shaped roofs, with lanterns; the Lady Chapel lantern has been replaced with uPVC framed glazing. The church has timber (double) doors throughout, their planking set at complementary angles with square bronze handles. The areas between the three main roof vaults have clerestory glazing filled with panels of bright coloured glass made by the artist John Chrestien.

The nave and chapels contain bespoke timber bench seating and frontals. The sanctuary is stepped, of white marble, with a carved marble altar, ambo and reserved sacrament. Suspended in the air above the sanctuary is a crucifix in metal and timber (artist unknown) framed by the narrow vertical coloured glass windows in shades of deep scarlet. The walls to the nave and transepts contain the stations of the cross in bronze framed coloured mosaic, with large Roman numerics in bronze to the corners (artist unknown).

Music and liturgy

The octagonal Baptistery and Lady Chapel have an exposed timber and steel framed roof with central lantern. The Baptistry has an octagonal, cone shaped marble font placed the centre of a decorative marble floor surround. The Lady Chapel has bronze and timber glazed doors, a white marble altar of similar design to the main altar, and behind it a large plain marble reredos with a figure of Our Lady set on a small plinth. The confessionals in the side transept have coloured glass and timber doors.