Description

CHESTER CITY (EM)

SJ4066 UPPER NORTHGATE STREET 1932-1/6/275 (West side) 28/07/55 Bluecoat School and former Chapel of St John Baptist (Formerly Listed as: UPPER NORTHGATE STREET The Bluecoat School) (Formerly Listed as: UPPER NORTHGATE STREET Church of Little St John)

GV II*

Chapel, orphanage and school, now youth centre. Founded 1700 by Bishop Stratford and built 1717. Stone-dressed orange brick; hipped grey slate roof. U-shaped. EXTERIOR: 2 storeys; symmetrical; plinth. Central block has pedimented entrance bay with 2 bays to each side; second and fourth bays recessed. Central bay has through passage in basket-arched painted-stone Tuscan case carrying shouldered round arched niche with statue of Bluecoat boy 1854 by Edward Richardson. A basket-arched 19-pane sash in pilastered case to each side of entrance; a narrower bay to each side has door of 6 fielded panels in pilastered case with blank panel above. Second-storey floorband; blank panel to entrance bay; 2 square 6-pane sashes to each side have simple stone cases with keys. Cornice; clock in central pediment; parapet with simple stone cap. Central octagonal belfry cupola has round-arched bell-openings and copper roof. Projecting south and north wing, each with 2 basket-arched 16-pane sashes to court in ground floor and 2 square 6-pane sashes to first floor, all in cases as in central block. Front of south wing has basket-arched window to former Chapel of St John, arch breaking floorband, with 2 mullions, central glazing bar, 2 horizontal bars and impost transom; case with panelled pilasters. North wing has basement window projecting above plinth and window of 46 panes, including fanlight, in case matching that to chapel. The south face has 6 fixed lights of 16 panes with 1-pane hopper inserts; 6-pane first floor sashes above, all in cases as to the front; plinth, floorband, cornice and parapet. The north face, similar to south face, has a door and windows also to basement, facing Canal Street. The rear is simply expressed. Long, narrow area to basement has quarter-landing and 10 steps, now concrete, down to basement; access to central passage bridges area. Wrought-iron

railing to area has round knob-topped balusters on painted stone plinth. Brick reveals to passage arch with panelled imposts; keystone. The ground floor has 2 segmental-arched 12-pane flush sashes and an altered, deeper, 15-pane sash north of passage; a square bay window of 4;4;8;4;4-panes with pilaster mullions of stone; 2 segmental-arched 15-pane sashes and bay window, as to north, south of passage. Brick floorband; 11 recessed 9-pane fixed lights to second storey in segmental-arched openings; cornice parapet and plain stone coping; 2 lateral chimneys. INTERIOR: most details are removed. Recessed 2-panel shaped double gates with wrought-iron spikes in central through-passage. Cellars at rear with some barrel and groined vaulting in brick. A few doors of 6 fielded or 6 plain panels. A dogleg oak stair at junctions of south and north wing with central wing, with turned newels, stick balusters and oak rails. One or 2 rooms have cornices. The former Chapel of St John Baptist is stripped of features and sub-divided.

Listing NGR: SJ4038166701

External Links

• Bluecoat School, Chester at Wikipedia
• Wikidata Q4930286

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Old House Eco Handbook: A Practical Guide to Retrofitting for Energy-Efficiency & Sustainability
• 
  Cork: City and County (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  Kent: West and the Weald: The Buildings of England (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Kent: North East and East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of Historic Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
• 
  Hampshire: Winchester and the North (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)