Forbes Road, Hillsborough, Sheffield

Image: © David Hallam-Jones Taken: 18 Feb 2018

The Church of the Sacred Heart near the junction with Langsett Road. Between 1850-1903 Catholics in Hillsborough and Lower Walkley had been able to use the chapel at the nearby Hillsborough Barracks. However, an increase in the size of the congregation produced a need for larger premises and in July 1903 a multi-purpose school-cum- chapel was built on some land between Forbes Road and Ripley Street. This school-cum-chapel, which was designed by C.M. Hadfield, and it acted as a Chapel of Ease (a satellite church) for the Parish of St Vincent’s. This same building still exists today and now houses the Sacred Heart Primary School. The actual parish of The Sacred Heart was created in 1920, becoming independent of St Vincent's on 5 August of that year, although because the parish had no ‘proper’ church, the first priest conducted Mass in the school-cum-chapel. Next a temporary church was opened in 1921. The church seen here however, which was consecrated in May 1935, was also designed by Mr C. M. Hadfield (of Hadfield & Son). This Grade II-listed building is constructed from specially made thin red bricks with an unusual surface texture. In addition, the external brickwork facing is unusual in that it employs Monk bond coursing (a brick laying style), something that is quite rare. The church has been referred to as "one of the best interwar churches in Sheffield".

Images are licensed for reuse under creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0