St John the Baptist's Church, Atherton

St John the Baptist’s Church stands in Atherton’s Market Place, a Grade II listed Anglican parish church built in the late 19th century. Its exterior combines Runcorn sandstone with ashlar dressings and a tiled roof, reflecting the Decorated style. The plan includes a five-bay nave, north and south aisles, a two-bay chancel, and a southwest tower rising to 37 metres. The tower has five stages with octagonal buttresses and embattled parapets, while the west window holds seven lights and the east window six. A clock by Potts of Leeds was added in 1895. The church’s history begins with a chapel built in 1645 by John Atherton, later replaced in 1814 and again in 1878–96 by the Lancaster architects Paley and Austin. The chancel and first three bays were completed in 1879 at a cost of £10,000, partly funded by Fletcher, Burrows and Company. Mining subsidence in 1899 caused the tower to lean, and a fire in 1991 damaged the east end, later restored by Peter Skinner. The interior features a hammerbeam roof, clustered piers, and a stone pulpit memorialising Bishop James Fraser. Inside, the nave has lamps designed by Peter Skinner and stained glass by C. E. Kempe and others. The octagonal alabaster font and reused 1728 box pews add to the interior character. The two-manual organ, built in 1967, replaced an 1888 instrument by J. C. Bishop and Son. The church remains a notable example of Paley and Austin’s work, praised for its craftsmanship and monumental scale.