By John Wimperis, Local Democracy Reporter: Construction Firm: A village’s unique brutalist church is set to be saved from demolition, as a local construction firm plans to buy it for their new offices.
The Church of the Good Shepherd has always divided opinion in the village of Batheaston, on the edge of Bath, for its striking design. Built in 1967, it closed in 2020, and last year the council granted planning permission for it to be demolished and replaced with houses — to the relief of some in the village but an outcry from others.
It was put up for sale as a development opportunity but now the preferred bidder to buy the building is a locally-based construction firm which wants to save it, turning it into offices and a childcare space. Wraxall Builders, who were behind the conversion of Bath’s Quaker Meeting House into the new Toppings bookshop, are currently based just across the village in the Bath Brewery building.
“We have been looking for a new office for some time,” said Wraxall Builders’s Henry Channer. He lives in Batheaston and saw the petition to save the unique church from demolition. He said: “I personally really like the building.”
He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “It’s sometimes good for things to stand out. The other thing about it, for me personally, is that you look at it outside and it’s not a beauty but you go inside and it’s just an incredible space — it’s like a TARDIS.”
Wraxall Builders want to turn the ground floor of the former church into their new offices and convert the main worship space to a childcare centre, after a need for childcare was identified by the community. Mr Channer said: “Our office will just be an office but the childcare space in the middle of Batheaston will be really valuable for the village.”
The company hopes to complete the sale soon and plans to submit a planning application later this month, after consulting with the community. A drop in session for the Batheaston community to see the plans is being held at the church next week.
The church was designed by Bath architect Martin Fisher — who was also behind the design of St Peter and Paul’s in Combe Down — and consists of poured concrete blocks. It does not have a traditional spire, but instead its square roof slopes up to the south east corner, reflecting the tent of a travelling pilgrim.
The church’s main feature is its huge window — believed to be the first of its kind in the UK — which appears a dull grey from outside. Its coloured pattern can be seen from the inside as the light shines in through the window but is only revealed to people outside when the church is lit up from within.
Emblematic of the changing face of the Catholic Church, the Church of the Good Shepherd was the first church in the area built after the major changes of Vatican II and adopted the now iconic brutalist style of the times. Three years later, similar ideas would lead to the construction of Clifton Cathedral in Bristol.
The church closed during Covid-19 and, with declining numbers attending mass, was judged to not be viable to reopen. But architecture experts hailed the building as “a characteristic and interesting example of mid-twentieth century religious architecture” and it was locally listed as a non-designated heritage asset. Mr Channer told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “It’s worth keeping.”
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