St Hugh of Lincoln Church

Tucked away in a suburb of Stretford, this church has retained much of its original character, including the green copper roof that can be glimpsed from the M60 orbital motorway. A parish was installed here in 1938 and worship took place in a hastily erected hall. In the early 1960s fund raising efforts by Fr James Forrestall meant that a new building could be commissioned. The fan shaped plan responds to changes in the liturgy at around the same period. The low narthex gives way to a wide space for worship, with focus drawn to the sanctuary by way of a toplit funnel at the east end. A glazed screen above the entrance is supported by  a stylised cross that doubles as a structural member for the oversailing roof canopy. Most striking of all are the full height dalle de verre windows by Buckfast Abbey Studio on the north and south flanking walls. The architect W. F. A. Evans of Surbiton, is an obscure figure who did not otherwise work in the diocese, and may have had an association with Fr Forrestall through the Serra Club, an organisation of lay Catholics devoted to fostering vocations to the priesthood and religious life; Fr Forrestall was at that time the club’s national chaplain [1].

[1] https://taking-stock.org.uk/building/stretford-st-hugh-of-lincoln/