It is a celebrated early work by the important church architect G F Bodley, incorporating notable stained glass by William Morris and his company Morris & Co. Bodley was given the commission by Samuel Marling, patriarch of the mill-owning family, who lived in the adjacent Stanley Park House.

The church has a distinctive 'saddleback' tower, derived from French Gothic architecture, which was a significant influence on Bodley's early style.

[1] Bodley designed the pews and choir-stalls using poppy-heads and fleur de lys as key motifs, and the font, the inlaid marble pulpit, communion rails and door iron work all show the attention to design that Bodley paid to all aspects of the church.

Philip Webb provided the scheme for the whole church and the detail of the Creation window at the west end.

Edward Burne-Jones, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Ford Madox Brown and Campfield were all involved.