| Upper Brook Street Chapel | |
|---|---|
 The former chapel, in 2017 | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation |
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| Ecclesiastical or organizational status |
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| Status |
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| Location | |
| Location | Upper Brook Street,Chorlton-on-Medlock,Manchester, England |
  Location of the formerchapel inManchester | |
| Coordinates | 53°28′9″N2°13′53″W / 53.46917°N 2.23139°W /53.46917; -2.23139 |
| Architecture | |
| Architect | Sir Charles Barry |
| Type | Church architecture |
| Style | |
| Groundbreaking | 1837 |
| Completed | 1839 |
| Materials | Sandtstone; slate |
Listed Building – Grade II* | |
| Official name | Former Unitarian chapel |
| Designated | 3 October 1974 |
| Reference no. | 1270670 |
TheUpper Brook Street Chapel, also known as theUnitarian Chapel, theWelsh Baptist Chapel, and laterIslamic Academy, is a formerchapel of historical architectural importance with an attachedSunday School, located on the east side of Upper Brook Street inChorlton-on-Medlock,Manchester, England.
Completed as aProtestant Nonconformist chapel in 1839, the building was purposed variously as a place of worship forUnitarians, WelshBaptists, as a Kingdom Hall ofJehovah's Witnesses, and as anIslamicmosque, before its current purpose, since 2017, asstudent accommodation. Designed bySir Charles Barry as the firstGothic Revival chapel for theBritish Unitarians, at the very beginning of the reign of Queen Victoria, the building waslisted as Grade II* on theBuildings at Risk Register, rated as "very bad", on 3 October 1974. The building is owned byManchester City Council and was partially demolished in 2006. TheVictorian Society placed the building on a list of ten most threatened buildings in England and Wales. It was restored and converted to student accommodation in 2017 by Buttress Architects.
The chapel was designed bySir Charles Barry,[1] shortly before he designed thePalace of Westminster (Houses of Parliament). It was constructed between 1837 and 1839 out ofsandstone, with aslate roof. It is in EnglishGothic Revival style. The building has seven narrow bays, withbuttresses and alancet in each bay. The west end has a giant mouldedarchway, with an arched doorway at the ground floor with a window above. On the east end there is arose window. The corners are square, withpinnacles. The inside of the chapel hadgalleries on three sides, and a ribbed,vaulted ceiling. The attached two-storeySunday School is in the same style as the chapel, and has a triple-gabled north side, with large arched windows on the first floor. It also has a cantedapse on the west end, and alean-to porch.
The building marked a charge in the style of Nonconformist worship locations. Previously these were mostly built withbrick, and were plain, with the grander tending towardsGreek architecture. Said to be the first NeogothicNonconformist chapel, Manchester's Unitarian Chapel was preceded by theCongregational Chapel inMarch, Cambridgeshire,[2] which was constructed in 1836 and is also in the Neogothic style. Chapels built following the construction of these two resembledparish churches more than the former style.[3]
The building waslisted on 3 October 1974, and is currently classed as Grade II*.[1]
The chapel was originally constructed for theUnitarians. It replaced theMosley Street Chapel (built 1789,[4] demolished 1836[5]) upon its completion for baptisms, burials and marriages.[6] The chapel was used forburial rites[7] until 1882, the chapel had a graveyard from the outset, to both the north and south sides of the chapel. Restrictions were placed on this in 1856 and prohibited in 1882. Graves from the north side were relocated to brick vaults on the south side of the chapel around the time of the construction of the sunday school in 1877.[8]Baptisms were performed until at least 1912, andmarriages until at least 1916.[7]
Ministers at the chapel includeJohn James Tayler (until 1853),[4]William Henry Herford (1866–70),[9]Philip Wicksteed (circa 1890),[10]John Trevor (1890–91, left to startThe Labour Church)[5][11] andEdward Walker Sealy (1910–?).[9]
The chapel was sold in 1928 due to changes in the district,[5] and was subsequently used as aWelsh Baptist Chapel.[1] The chapel was then used as aJehovah's WitnessesKingdom Hall in the early 1970s.[12] The building has been owned byManchester City Council since the 1970s,[13] who purchased land alongside Upper Brook Street with the aim of constructing a large motorway into Manchester, which was never realised.[14]
Both the chapel and Sunday school were occupied by theIslamic Academy of Manchester between 1974 and 2006, when it was used as amosque, teaching centre and for outreach work in the Asian community.[15]
By the beginning of the 21st century, the future of the building was looking increasingly uncertain.[16] The chapel was unsafe and substantial money was needed for emergency repairs.[15] An unsuccessful bid to theHeritage Lottery Fund for funding to repair the building was made by the Islamic Academy in 2003. In 2001 and 2005 the city council commissioned structural advice regarding the building, prior to removing most of the roof, with the agreement ofEnglish Heritage.[13]
Parts of the chapel were demolished at the start of 2006 on safety grounds, with scaffolding holding up some other sections. By 2010 the chapel was on theBuildings at Risk Register, rated as "very bad".[17] TheVictorian Society placed it on a list of ten most threatened buildings in England and Wales.[18]
In October 2010, Manchester City Council announced that it was in discussion with a developer to renovate the building and bring it back into use.[14] In August 2013, the council received a planning application from the Church Converts (Manchester) to repair the building and convert it into apartments; the application was granted in February 2014.[19] The redevelopment by CZero Developments consisted of 73 private apartments in both the chapel and the Sunday school.[20]
From September 2017, the building has been operating asstudent accommodation, with a gym, cinema room, study areas and a lounge.[21]
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Buildings and structures inManchester, England | ||
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| Skyscrapers (over 100 metres) |
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| High-rises (over 50 metres) |
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| Notable low-rises (city centre or Grade II* listed) |
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| Mills andwarehouses |
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| Religious (Grade I or II* listed) |
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| Transportation | ||
| Entertainment |
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| Sports venues | ||
| Memorials and sculptures | ||
| Bridges | ||
Italics denote building under construction | ||
