Parkway Methodist Church, Bristol

During the 1960s and 1970s, Bristol's urban geography was radically altered by the "Parkway scheme" (now the M32 motorway). The construction severed Lower Ashley Road, creating a physical barrier between the neighbourhoods of St Paul's, St Werburgh's, and Easton. This infrastructure project necessitated the compulsory purchase and demolition of numerous properties, including two Methodist places of worship: the Wesley Chapel at Baptist Mills and the Brookland Church on Lower Ashley Road. The Wesley Chapel closed in December 1969; its members subsequently joined the Brookland congregation while plans were developed for a combined replacement church. The project for the new church was…

Designed by the architect Eustace Button, Parkway Methodist Church was constructed between 1971 and 1972. Construction work was carried out by the Bristol firm Henry Willcock & Co. Ltd. The structure is notable for its octagonal plan and a steeply pitched roof surmounted by a central spirelet. The layout excludes transepts, featuring instead a short apsidal sanctuary on the eastern side. The interior contains modern stained glass, including an east window made of cast glass and resin. This abstract work was produced in 1971 by Geoffrey Robinson of the firm Joseph Bell & Son. The church also contains a pipe organ, positioned at the rear of the building behind a timber screen. The instrument…