page_title: Sharpe, Paley and Austin
section_title: Paley, Austin and Paley
hierarchical_section_title: Sharpe, Paley and Austin / History and works / Paley, Austin and Paley
caption_attribution_description: St George's Church, Heaviley, Stockport, (1892–97) from Buxton Road, Stockport This is a photo of listed building number 1067194.
context_page_description: Sharpe, Paley and Austin are the surnames of architects who practised in Lancaster, Lancashire, England, between 1835 and 1946, working either alone or in partnership. The full names of the principals in their practice, which went under various names during its life, are Edmund Sharpe; Edward Graham Paley, who practised as E. G. Paley; Hubert James Austin; Henry Anderson Paley, son of Edward, usually known as Harry Paley; and, for a very brief period, Geoffrey Langshaw Austin, son of Hubert. The firm's commissions were mainly for buildings in Lancashire and what is now Cumbria, but also in Yorkshire, Cheshire, the West Midlands, North Wales, and Hertfordshire.
  The practice specialised in work on churches; the design of new churches, restoring older churches, and making additions or alterations. They also designed country houses, and made alterations to existing houses. Almost all their churches were designed in Gothic Revival style, except for some of Sharpe's earliest churches and a few designed later by the practice. Within the Gothic Revival style, the practice initially used Early English and, particularly, Decorated features. E. G.
context_section_description: In 1886 Edward Paley's son, Henry (who was and is usually known as Harry), became a partner in the practice, which continued to work much as before, with ecclesiastical and secular commissions.  New churches were built in villages and towns, and older churches were restored or altered.  The first new country church resulting from the partnership was the Church of the Good Shepherd, Tatham (1888–89).  Brandwood et al. describe the 1890s as "something of a golden decade for the firm's country churches".  The first of these was St Bartholomew, Barbon (1892–93), mainly Perpendicular in style, but with some rounded arches, followed by St Peter, Field Broughton (1892–94), also in Perpendicular style.  Smaller churches were St Mary, Borwick (1894–96) (Perpendicular again), and a mission church seating 150 at Sunderland Point (1894).  The 1890s was also a prolific period for new town churches but, before the start of that decade, the firm had designed St Mary, Ince-in-Makerfield (1887, demolished 1974), St  John, Birkdale (1899–90), and St John, Cloughfold, in Rawtenstall (1899–90, now redundant).  Major town churches of the first half of the 1890s include St John, Crawshawbooth (1890–92), and Christ Church, Waterloo (near Liverpool) (1891–99).  During this time the partnership produced their only church in the south of England, All Saints, Hertford (1893–95).  Brandwood et al. say that it is a "Perpendicular building entirely characteristic of the firm" but, being built in Runcorn sandstone from Cheshire, Pevsner considered that it was "completely alien in Herts".  This period also saw the finest church design to be executed by the practice, St George, Heaviley in Stockport (1892–97), which is considered to be the solely the work of Austin.  Brandwood et al. describe it as "the largest, grandest and most expensive church the practice ever built and is the masterwork of Hubert Austin".  Hartwell et al. say it is "a church on a splendid scale".  Another ecclesiastical project was the chapel at the Royal Albert Asylum (1886–80).
  During this time much less work was carried out in the secular sphere.  There were no new substantial country houses designed during this time, the largest being the "rather plain, four-square" Hampsfield House.  The only major public buildings were the Storey Institute (1887–91) in Lancaster, and the Lancaster Royal Infirmary (1893–96).  Work was carried out on school buildings, including extensions at Lancaster Royal Grammar School and Christ Church School, Lancaster (both 1887), and a new building for the Keswick School of Industrial Art (1893–94).  Commercial buildings included shops for the Lancaster and Skerton Cooperative Society, including a large store in the middle of Lancaster.
caption: St George's Church, Heaviley, Stockport, (1892–97) considered to be Hubert Austin's finest church
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