St. Andrew’s, Roker
| St Andrew's, Roker | |
|---|---|
 |
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| 54°55′23″N 1°22′01″W / 54.923°N 1.367°WCoordinates: 54°55′23″N 1°22′01″W / 54.923°N 1.367°W | |
| Location | Roker, Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| History | |
| Dedication | Saint Andrew |
| Associated people | John Priestman |
| Architecture | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Heritage designation | Grade I listed building |
| Designated | 1950 |
| Architect(s) | Edward Schroeder Prior |
| Years built | 1907 |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Monkwearmouth |
| Diocese | Durham |
| Clergy | |
| Priest(s) | The Revd Richard Bradshaw |
St Andrew's, Roker (1905-7) is an Anglican parish church in Sunderland, England. It is recognised as one of the finest churches of the first half of the twentieth century and the masterpiece of Edward Schroeder Prior. The design of St Andrew's drew together many of the strings of Prior's philosophy and approach to design and building. Three years before commencing St Andrew's, Prior had written that the architect's first purpose was to provide;
"a dignified distinct building dedicated to the service of the Church. Church architecture, least of all, has been able to go beyond the trivial efforts of traditional picturesqueness; least of all our building it has been monumental".
At St Andrew's, Prior achieved a monumental church free from style. His experiments in structure, concern for materials and means of building reached their apogee at St Andrew's. The church was listed Grade I in 1950.
Throughout the 19th Century Sunderland's population had been rapidly expanding. By the end of the century only the area around Roker Park remained undeveloped. The development of the area prompted the need for a new church. The Roker and Fulwell New Church Committee was set up in 1903 to raise funds for the church. A local shipbuilder John Priestman offered £6000 towards the construction in memorial to his mother. As conditions of the offer Priestman required the church to be completed by 31 December 1905, to retain the right to approve the arrangements of the new church and to provide the living for a vicar of his own choice.
Prior seemed fated to win the commission. B.F. Wescott, Prior's tutor at Cambridge, had been Bishop of Durham until his death in 1901. His successor, the Reverend Handley Moule, was an original trustee of Prior's Henry Martyn Hall, Cambridge. The vicar of the adjacent Monkwearmouth church the Revd. D.S. Boutflower was a close friend of Prior's brother Charles.
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Wikipedia