Listed Building: TRINITY METHODIST CHURCH (1386813)

Church. 1901. By RJ Winnicott. Red and grey/red bricks in English bond, stone dressings. Composite slate hipped roofs. PLAN: 6-bay church with 2 south porches. The south face has campanile at west end and short tower at east. North wing comprising hall and school rooms. EXTERIOR: south face: to left (west) the 3-stage campanile has at first stage two 6-panelled doors separated by stone mullion and set under flat stone lintel, imposts and pediment, banded stone cornice. Second stage has 2 tall recessed brick panels at each side of tower with small round-arched stone arcade set within each panel with short squat columns. Stone cornice. Third stage has on each side a recessed arcade of 4 round-arched openings with columns. Stone bracketed cornice, stone coped brick parapet, lead covered dome crowned by small round domed turret and weathervane. To right the projecting centre has a 5-light stone mullioned window with sashes and leaded lights. Central sash is taller and wider and has curved stone pediment, flat stone lintel. To left and right within recessed face is a sash with leaded lights set under cambered brick arch. Stone band cornice. Upper tier has at centre a giant order with paired stone Corinthian columns, entablature and pediment with brick tympanum. Large Venetian type 3-light casement window with leaded lights set under round stone arch, keystone, banded imposts and apron with stone balusters. To left and right are 2 sashes each with leaded lights set under cambered brick arch. At far right (east) is a short projecting tower with 2 similar entrance doors as far left. Campanile, stone cornice. 2 sash windows with leaded lights, each set under a cambered brick arch. Centre and flanking brick pilasters each with stone cap and base. Stone cornice, coped parapet and pyramidal roof with iron fretted pinnacle. West face: at centre of church is a projecting porch, stone entrance opening with flat arch, flanking Doric pilasters, entablature and pediment. At rear of porch is a 2-leaf door, each leaf with 6 raised and moulded panels, centre panels glazed. To left and right returns are 2 narrow sashes with leaded lights each set under flat stone arch. To right of porch are 4 paired sashes with leaded lights, each set under a cambered brick arch, brick band dripstone curved over each window. Second tier with five 8-paned casements, each set under a round stone arch. Projecting bracketed eaves. To left of church is a projecting square bay with 2-leaf boarded door and overlight, stone pediment. Window over similar to church, stone cornice and pyramidal roof. Further left is the attached Hall and classrooms with projecting front. 4 paired sashes each with 4 panes, leaded lights, stone sill, set under cambered brick arch and dripstone. First floor has 4 round-headed windows similar to church. East face similar to west but with at far right a projecting external staircase access to first floor of Hall wing, flanking corrugated-iron side panels to stairs. Ground and first floor of hall have 2 8-paned casements, each set under a cambered brick arch with similar paired casement at centre. North face: hall wing has 2 ground floor and 5 first floor 6-pane transomed casements each set under cambered brick arch. Small lean-to structure to right and boarded door set under brick cambered arch. INTERIOR: arcade on each side with 5 slim full height fluted cast-iron Doric columns each set off high octagonal base. Balcony on 3 sides (south, east and west) has carved wood panelled fronts with columns and rounded arches, moulded cap. Each 6 panels have flanking timber pilasters. Sloping balcony ceiling; flat plastered ceiling over balcony with curved ceiling at centre between east and west arcades and curved beams supported on columns. Balcony access stairs at south end. At north end is the organ recess with fronting carved wood pulpit with projecting rounded front and access stairs at each side. Organ recess has round arch with pilasters. Original pews. Leaded light windows with stained glass. (Lloyd DW: Buildings of Portsmouth and its Environs: Portsmouth: 1974-: 132; The Buildings of England: Pevsner N & Lloyd DW: Hampshire and the Isle of Wight: Harmondsworth: 1967-: 445; Offord J: Churches, Chapels and Places of Worship on Portsea Island: Southsea: 1989-: 93, 94). Selected Sources Books and journals Lloyd, D W , Buildings of Portsmouth and its Environs, (1974), 132 Offord, J , Churches Chapels and Places of Worship on Portsea Island, (1989), 93,94 Pevsner, N, The Buildings of England: Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, (1967), 445