Church Heritage Record 602208

Nave and chancel west tower, south entrance porch, north vestry, crypt below nave and chancel.

Overall length c22.5m x 10m width (minus vestry and porch).

That there was a previous medieval church on this spot is no surprise; Ward End Hall (SMR: 02932) stood immediately to the north of the church from c1710 up until it was demolished after the Second World War and adjacent to this was a large moated site (now destroyed) which would have seen an earlier hall. The church itself is within the probable medieval settlement of Ward End and the site is therefore of archaeological significance.

A chapel of ease, dedicated to Holy Trinity, Blessed Virgin and St Margaret was built 1517 because the inhabitants of Ward End were frequently prevented by floods from getting to the parish church of Aston. It was paid for by Thomas Bond (or Boyd) a merchant of Coventry and lord of Ward End Manor. That building was reported to be in disrepair in the early 18th century and again in the early 19th century with some evidence that it was used as a cart or cow shed.

The present church poses a conundrum – sources are divided on whether the present church was built by John Frith or Thomas Rickman. There is a groundplan (see below) signed by Frith in 1834 which is perhaps the most convincing evidence, however the style is indeed akin to Rickman’s Commissioners Gothic (one would expect the tower to have pinnacles, and the VCH reports that at one time it did) although it is not included in general lists of his work. It is interesting to note that Frith was working as Clerk of Works for Rickman in 1834, perhaps the final design was a collaboration of both architects?

Regardless of the architect there is another mystery as to whether the tower remains from an earlier build. It has been assumed that the church was a complete new build in 1834 however the tower could stylistically be dated to the early 18th century without difficulty. The Tudor style west door is out of keeping with the pointed lancets and door shown in the nave and chancel. There are unsigned sections and elevations for the new church in 1834 which show no tower at all, although on Frith’s plan it is there.

The VCH reports that the chapel was in ruins in 1730 and that it was being repaired by a Mr Blackman, an ironmonger of Birmingham. Whether Mr Blackman completed the works is unclear and in the early 19th century the building was in disrepair again. It is not unfeasible that the tower was ‘repaired’ or rebuilt in 1730 and was incorporated into the new building of 1834. Regrettably with the presence of the external render there is no way of concluding this matter either way.  In 1929 there was an external restoration and internal refitting.

This small church is on the whole a straightforward essay in the Gothic style with thin pointed lancets and is pleasing in its simplicity. The west tower has already been discussed and is of two stages with diagonal buttresses to the height of the first stage with three weatherings. There is a single lancet to the north and a disused west door in a pseudo-four centred arch with a wide rectangular hood mould, a jarring discrepancy in the overall Gothic design. At the second stage there are clock faces to the north and south covering blocked openings which probably matched the louvred bell openings to the west and east. The openings are pointed with short hood moulds finishing with plain stops. The tower has a simple parapet although the VCH suggests that it was once embattled with pinnacles.

The pitched tiled roof is continuous for the nave and chancel although it shortens at the east end to adjust to the narrower width of the chancel. The nave is of five equal bays, the central bay on the south side is the main entrance porch and opposite on the north is the vestry. The porch and the vestry are roughly equal in size and both have low hanging pitched roofs and diagonal buttresses rising to a shouldered gable. The door to the porch is arched with plain wooden doors and the north wall of the vestry has a short lancet window, each with hood moulding and stops.

The remaining four bays of the nave on each elevation contain single pointed lancets with short hood moulds. Each bay is divided from the next by a slender buttress with two weatherings. The chancel adds a further bay to the church and there are single lancets in the north and south walls. In the east wall there is a stepped triple lancet window. The buttresses are diagonal and as seen with the porch, rise and turn to a slightly shouldered gable. Access to the vault is through cellar doors under the east window.

The interior feels somewhat gloomy due to the lack of natural light; every window has stained glass and the walls are full of memorials and monuments. The small nave is pewed throughout on raised timber platforms and the font is positioned just inside the entrance to the west.

There is one step to the chancel area and a wide pointed arch to the sanctuary with a further three steps; the floor is carpeted in red throughout. The arch to the tower at the west end is panelled at the lower stage and above this has a small curved projecting gallery on which the organ is placed; the display pipes fill the arch almost entirely. The roof is of exposed queen post trusses with decorative spandrels and unusual cusping.