Christ Church, Port Sunlight

Christ Church stands in Port Sunlight, a planned village built by William Lever for workers at his soap factory. Designed by William and Segar Owen, the church was completed in 1904 and later became part of the United Reformed Church. The Lever family vault was added in 1914, and two new rooms were built in 2000 for children and youth activities. The church is built in Gothic Revival style from red sandstone and features a six-bay nave, transepts, and a canted chancel. Its exterior includes a southwest porch, a southeast tower, and the Lady Lever Memorial at the west end. The Lady Lever Memorial is a richly decorated loggia with buttresses, pinnacles, and niches. Inside, the church seats 800 people and has simple arcades carried on piers without capitals. The furnishings include oak pews, screens, and reredos, while the floor is laid in black and white Italian marble. The stained glass is mostly by Heaton, Butler and Bayne, and the church houses a four-manual pipe organ built in 1904. The Lady Lever Memorial contains the chest tomb of Lady Lever and William Lever, with bronze effigies by Sir W. Goscombe John. The churchyard holds war graves from both world wars.