Kelly & Birchall
Kelly & Birchall was a Leeds-based British architectural partnership active from 1886 to 1904 and noted for churches in Italianate and Gothic Revival styles.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Kelly & Birchall was an architectural partnership established in Leeds in 1886 by Edward Birchall and John Kelly. The practice operated during the late Victorian period, when expanding towns, new suburban districts, educational reform and the growth of Catholic and Anglican communities created substantial demand for purpose-built churches and civic buildings. Its work was concentrated in England, with Leeds serving as the partnership's principal base and projects extending to London and other parts of the country. The firm was particularly associated with ecclesiastical architecture. Its churches combined Italianate and Gothic Revival influences, often using Romanesque details, brick construction, prominent towers or campanili, and carefully articulated interiors. The partnership completed St Mary of Bethany in New Wortley, Leeds, an early project inherited from the earlier Adams & Kelly practice. It also designed St Luke's Church in Kingston upon Thames and St Patrick's Church in Soho Square, London. The latter, a Roman Catholic church built between 1891 and 1893, is among the practice's best-known surviving works and is listed at Grade II*. Kelly & Birchall also undertook secular and educational commissions. In Leeds, the partners designed the Central Higher Grade School on Woodhouse Lane, completed in 1889, with an attic added the following year by William Landless, a former clerk of works associated with the practice. The building later became council offices. Several Leeds projects connected with the partnership have not survived: St Mary of Bethany was demolished in 1975; the original All Hallows Church was destroyed by fire in 1970; and St Francis of Assisi in Holbeck was demolished in 1979. The individual careers of the partners extended beyond the formal life of the partnership. Edward Birchall had practiced in Leeds since the early 1860s and was also responsible for works including Tylney Hall in Hampshire and the Carlton Hill Friends Meeting House in Leeds. John Kelly continued designing churches after the partnership ended, including All Saints' Church in Petersham, St Agatha's Roman Catholic Church in Kingston upon Thames and the Sacred Heart Church in Teddington. Near the end of his career he established John Kelly & Sons in London. After Kelly's death in 1904, his son Claude Kelly continued the practice, and later work attributed to Claude includes St Peter's Church in Aldrington, Hove, which may also incorporate his father's contribution. Kelly & Birchall is therefore best understood not as a contemporary consumer brand but as a historical architectural practice whose reputation rests on surviving listed churches, educational buildings and the broader influence of its partners on late-Victorian ecclesiastical architecture. The partnership itself ceased to operate in its original form after the deaths of Birchall and Kelly in the early twentieth century.
History
Edward Birchall had established an architectural practice in Leeds by the early 1860s. John Kelly had previously worked in partnership with Richard Life Adams, whose practice was known as Adams & Kelly. After Adams's death in 1883, Birchall and Kelly formed Kelly & Birchall in 1886. Their partnership coincided with a period of intense church building and institutional expansion in Victorian England. One of the firm's early commissions was St Mary of Bethany in New Wortley, Leeds. The project had initially been undertaken by Adams & Kelly and was completed under Kelly & Birchall. The church, built in 1885 at a reported cost of £5,600, included a 135-foot spire and a brick-lined interior. It was later demolished in 1975. The partners also designed the original All Hallows Church at the junction of Hyde Park Road and Regent Terrace in Leeds. Although the building had been completed before the formal partnership, it was associated with the practice's Leeds body of work; it was destroyed by fire on 27 April 1970, while its vicarage survived. Another Leeds commission, the Roman Catholic Church of St Francis of Assisi in Manor Road, Holbeck, was built in 1896 and demolished in 1979. The firm's surviving ecclesiastical work demonstrates its interest in both Italianate and Gothic Revival architecture. St Luke's Church on Gibbon Road in Kingston upon Thames was built in 1886–1887 and is listed Grade II. St Patrick's Church in Soho Square, a Roman Catholic church in central London, was built between 1891 and 1893 and is listed Grade II*. The practice's church designs commonly used Romanesque or Italianate components and, in some cases, substantial campanili or other vertically emphasized features. Kelly & Birchall also received an important educational commission in Leeds: the Central Higher Grade School on Woodhouse Lane, later called Leeds Higher Grade School. The building was completed in 1889, and an attic was added in 1890 by William Landless, who had served as a clerk of works connected with the partners and executed designs on their behalf. The building was later converted into council offices during 1994–1995. The partners maintained independent careers alongside the partnership. Birchall's earlier work included Carlton Hill Friends Meeting House in Leeds, completed in 1868, and Tylney Hall in Hampshire, built in 1879. Carlton Hill later accommodated a clothing factory in part of the building before refurbishment by Leeds Metropolitan University in 2007; it is now known as Old Broadcasting House and bears a blue plaque commemorating Birchall and the building's history. John Kelly continued his architectural career after the partnership period. His later church work included All Saints' Church in Petersham, St Agatha's Roman Catholic Church in Kingston upon Thames and the Sacred Heart Church in Teddington. These Roman Catholic churches are associated with an Italianate idiom incorporating Romanesque features, sometimes including large campanili. Toward retirement, Kelly established a new London practice, John Kelly & Sons, in Oxford Street. St Alban and St Stephen in St Albans dates from this later period. Kelly died in 1904, and his son Claude Kelly took over the practice. St Peter's Church in Aldrington, Hove, is attributed to Claude, although it is believed that John Kelly may also have contributed to its design. The original Kelly & Birchall partnership is consequently a historical, defunct practice rather than an ongoing architectural company. Its significance rests on the listed buildings that remain, the churches and schools it designed, and the continuing architectural work of its two principals and Kelly's family successor.
- 1904
John Kelly dies and Claude Kelly succeeds him
[1]John Kelly died in 1904; his son Claude Kelly subsequently took over the later family practice.
- 1903
Edward Birchall dies
[1]Edward Birchall died on 6 March 1903.
- 1896
St Francis of Assisi completed
[1]The Roman Catholic church of St Francis of Assisi was built on Manor Road in Holbeck, Leeds.
- 1893
St Patrick's Church completed
[1]St Patrick's Church in Soho Square was completed and later recognized as a Grade II* listed building.
- 1891
St Patrick's Church construction begins
[1]Construction began on the partnership's Roman Catholic St Patrick's Church in Soho Square, London.
- 1889
Central Higher Grade School completed
[1]The partners designed the Central Higher Grade School on Woodhouse Lane in Leeds.
- 1887
St Luke's Church completed
[1]The Grade II listed St Luke's Church in Kingston upon Thames was built during 1886–1887.
- 1886
Kelly & Birchall partnership established
[1]Edward Birchall and John Kelly formed the architectural partnership in Leeds.
- 1879
Tylney Hall built
[1]Edward Birchall designed Tylney Hall in Hampshire, a country house that later became a Grade II listed building and hotel.
- 1868
Carlton Hill Friends Meeting House completed
[1]Edward Birchall completed the principal Quaker meeting house at Carlton Hill in Leeds, an important pre-partnership work later refurbished as Old Broadcasting House.
Products and positioning
A late-Victorian architectural practice specializing in churches and other institutional buildings, with a design language drawing on Italianate, Romanesque and Gothic Revival traditions.
Roman Catholic church · 1891
St Patrick's Church, Soho Square
A Roman Catholic church in central London designed by Kelly & Birchall and built between 1891 and 1893. It is one of the partnership's most significant surviving works and has Grade II* listed status.
Anglican church · 1886
St Luke's Church, Kingston upon Thames
A church on Gibbon Road in Kingston upon Thames, built between 1886 and 1887. The building is listed Grade II and represents the firm's late-Victorian ecclesiastical work.
Educational building · 1889
Central Higher Grade School, Leeds
A school designed for Woodhouse Lane in Leeds and completed in 1889. An attic was added in 1890 by William Landless. The building was later converted into council offices.
Church · 1885
St Mary of Bethany, New Wortley
An early Leeds project completed by Kelly & Birchall after being initiated by Adams & Kelly. It featured a 135-foot spire and a brick-lined interior, but was demolished in 1975.
Roman Catholic church · 1896
St Francis of Assisi, Holbeck
A Roman Catholic church on Manor Road in Holbeck, Leeds, built in 1896 and later demolished in 1979.
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