St James' RC Church

The Pendleton area of Salford was largely condemned as slum housing in the twentieth century and a huge post-war reconstruction programme saw back-to-back terraces replaced with tower blocks and a shopping centre. This steel framed building shares some characteristics with Desmond Williams' other churches, St Augustine at All Saints, Manchester and St Sebastian, Salford. The bold brick forms give the church a presence at its high point behind the sanctuary. The monopitched roof, originally copper clad, slopes down towards the entrance at a lower porch which forms a narthex. The overall scheme is somewhat defensive, with few windows The slope of the roof and the stepped clerestory lighting create a striking impression inside, and full-height windows towards the east end incorporate stained glass figures said to have originated in the previous church [1]

[1] https://taking-stock.org.uk/building/salford-mother-of-god-and-st-james/