---
title: "St James, Slaithwaite"
description: "Located in Slaithwaite, Yorkshire. Built 1796; tower and side porches added 1890; entrance dated 1896. Diocese of Leeds. Grade II. Classical; later Gothic tower style."
category: "Church"
tags: ["Church","Church of England","Yorkshire","Slaithwaite","Grade II","Classical","Diocese of Leeds"]
canonical: "https://thebritishgazette.com/post/st-james-slaithwaite"
pubDate: "2026-09-06T02:40:49.148Z"
dateModified: "2026-09-08T16:00:55.554Z"
location: "Slaithwaite, Yorkshire"
country: "England"
county: "Yorkshire"
town: "Slaithwaite"
address: "Bankgate, Slaithwaite, Yorkshire, HD7 5AG"
postcode: "HD7 5AG"
built: "1796; tower and side porches added 1890; entrance dated 1896"
denomination: "Church of England"
dedications: ["James"]
diocese: "Leeds"
grade: "II"
style: "Classical; later Gothic tower"
materials: "Ashlar to north and south elevations; hammer-dressed stone to chancel; pitched slate roof"
website: "https://stjames-slaithwaite.com/"
openingHours: "Every Wednesday morning 9.30am to 12noon and at other various times or by arrangement."
parish: "Slaithwaite with East Scammonden"
listEntryUrl: "https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1233461"
gridReference: "SE 078 140"
accessNotes: "Ramp or level access available on request. Level access to the main areas. Level access throughout. Accessible toilets in church"
---

# St James, Slaithwaite

St James's is a Grade II parish church on Church Street in Slaithwaite, West Yorkshire, in the Diocese of Leeds: a Classical church of 1796 with a later west tower and porches, built by public subscription to replace an earlier chapel nearer the River Colne.

## Overview

Historic England lists the Church of Saint James (list entry 1233461, designated 25 May 1966). The listing records a church of 1796, Classical, with a later chancel; tower and side porches added in 1890. North and south elevations are ashlar; the chancel is hammer-dressed stone with stone quoins, under a pitched slate roof with gable copings. The two-storey, seven-bay nave has single-light stained-glass windows to both floors. A basement doorway on the south side is inscribed "NATIONAL SCHOOL 1824". The west tower is of four reducing tiers, with clock faces, round-arched louvred bell openings, and a parapet with paired crocketed corner pinnacles. The entrance is dated 1896. Inside, a raking gallery runs to three sides on round piers.

Geograph and local histories state that the 1796 church was built by public subscription, replacing a sixteenth-century chapel of ease. The present parish site notes a church on this higher ground from around 1789, after flooding of the earlier building nearer the river, and later Victorian pews and a tiered gallery. An 1859 stained-glass east window is recorded as by David and Charles Evans. The parish is Slaithwaite with East Scammonden.

## Further Information

- [Historic England list entry 1233461](https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1233461)
- [Parish website](https://stjames-slaithwaite.com/)
- [British Listed Buildings: Church of Saint James](https://britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/101233461-church-of-saint-james-colne-valley-ward)