Respecting the past, building the future: Housing charity’s stunning £1m makeover of St Matthew’s
‘A VENUE WHERE ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE’: Giroscope co-ordinator Martin Newman
Now & Then, a column by Angus Young
The restoration of the former St Matthew’s Church in Anlaby Road
A landmark former church in Hull is set to re-open as a place of work rather than worship after a stunning £1m makeover.
The transformation of St Matthew’s Church in Anlaby Road has been spearheaded by Hull-based housing charity Giroscope, which bought the derelict building in 2017 with the help of a European Regional Development Fund grant three years after it closed.
Although currently still very much a building site, six small offices and a large meeting room on a newly-constructed mezzanine floor featuring glazed balconies are expected to be ready to rent by the summer.
Restoring the church’s distinctive First World War Memorial Window shortly after securing possession of the Grade II listed building was an “early statement of intent,” according to Giroscope co-ordinator Martin Newman.
“When we got the keys, the window had already been removed and put into storage by the Church of England to make sure it didn’t get vandalised when the church closed.
“Taking on a building like this was always going to be a challenge but when we told the council’s conservation officer about our plans to restore the window, he immediately got what we were trying to do.”
The beautiful window was made by respected stained-glass manufacturers John Hardman & Co. and installed in 1922 in memory of men from the local community who fought and died in the First World War.
The inclusion of two contemporary figures – a soldier and a sailor – in the design make it unique among church stained-glass windows in Hull.
The window’s restoration was carried out by the York-based Barley Studio with grant funding from the War Memorials’ Trust and the Worshipful Company of Glaziers before being reinstalled in 2019.
Since then, work on the rest of the church has continued in what Martin describes as “steady rather than spectacular fashion”.
“The original idea of creating somewhere for people to work hasn’t really changed,” he says.
“As well as our housing, we have a few non-residential sites with workshop space which is great for people starting out with a business.
“Typically, they are perfect for people with a business idea who might need somewhere to start putting it into practice whereas with the office units here we are hoping to attract more established businesses.
“It’s going to be very much a place of work during office hours where people can meet and do business but we have also got enough room for other things, so on a night or at weekends it will take on a new life as a venue where anything is possible, whether it’s live music, a community event, a private function or a local history talk.”
Built in 1870, the church was originally designed to cater for the city’s growing population as Hull expanded from its historic core centred around the two medieval churches of Holy Trinity and St Mary’s.
The church’s distinctive broach spire remains the tallest church spire in Hull reflects the lofty ambition to create a landmark building for the largely middle-class community it originally served.
Today St Matthew’s sits in the middle of a very different community but one which Martin knows intimately, as the charity he co-founded initially as a workers’ co-operative nearly 40 years ago largely operates between Anlaby Road and Hessle Road.
“The community around here is a bit cut off because of the flyover,” he says.
“I mean, this church is actually on Anlaby Road but most people probably wouldn’t know it. Just getting around is not really straight forward, whether you are driving or walking and it’s going to get even worse when they remove the pedestrian bridge over the railway line in Selby Street.”
The reopening of St Matthew’s should bring a welcome focus back to the area, not least because of some trademark Giroscope features such as an array of solar panels covering the building’s south-facing roof.
An early pioneer in eco-friendly construction with its housing refurbishment work, the charity has nonetheless opted to use gas in the installation of a new underfloor heating system in the former church.
“ We looked at every possible solution and thought long and hard about it but, in the end, a gas-powered system was the only one that really worked for a building of this size with this sort of space,” says Martin.
“Having said that, the system runs on just two normal domestic gas boilers and is designed so that it can be easily switched to air source heat pumps at some point in the future.”
Ripping up the original floor not only required 30 skips to remove the debris but also revealed a primitive Victorian underfloor heating system which relied on heat being generated from a brick pit where wood was burned.
“Somehow, I don’t think it would have kept anyone very warm or very long,” laughs Martin.
Meanwhile, the solar array will provide enough power for the building’s electricity with extra power expected to be sold by the National Grid.
A new kitchen and toilets also form part of the facelift, along with a new balcony area where visitors will be able to get a close-up view of the War Memorial Window and two accompanying stone tablets listing 138 names of those lost in the conflict.
Once re-open, the building will retain its name – another very deliberate decision by its new owners.
“St Matthew’s has deep roots in the community as reflected by the memorials in here so we thought keeping the name was the right thing to do.
“Over the last few years we’ve had so many people popping in and telling us their parents or grandparents got married here and it’s still a very special place for them. Hopefully, it will stay that way for a long time.”
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