St James Buildings is a high-rise,

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

building on Oxford Street, in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, England, completed in 1912. The building was constructed in the

Edwardian Baroque Edwardian architecture usually refers to a Neo-Baroque architectural style that was popular for public buildings in the British Empire during the Edwardian era (1901–1910). Architecture up to 1914 is commonly included in this style. It can al ...

style and has a

Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone geological formation (formally named the Portland Stone Formation) dating to the Tithonian age of the Late Jurassic that is quarried on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The quarries are cut in beds of whi ...

exterior reaching a maximum height of .

History

The building opened in 1912 as the headquarters of the Calico Printers' Association Ltd, a company formed in 1899 from the amalgamation of 46 textile printing companies and 13 textile merchants. Companies involved in the merger included F. W. Grafton & Co, Edmund Potter & Co, Hoyle's Prints Ltd, John Gartside & Co, F. W. Ashton & Co, Rossendale Printing Company, Hewit & Wingate Ltd, and the Thornliebank Company Ltd. The renovated building is leased to other businesses by its owner

Bruntwood Bruntwood is a family-owned property company offering office space, serviced offices, retail space and virtual offices in the north of England and Birmingham in the United Kingdom. They own several high-profile buildings in the Manchester area, as ...

. As of February 2025, notable lessees include Kaplan Financial Ltd,

BPP Law School BPP University Law School is a private, for-profit provider of professional and academic legal education in the United Kingdom and one of the founding schools of BPP University. History BPP Law School has degree awarding powers through its pare ...

, the

Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) is a tribunal in the United Kingdom that adjudicates on complaints made against doctors, making independent decisions about their fitness to practise. This includes imposing sanctions for decisio ...

and the Manchester city centre campus for

Edge Hill University Edge Hill University is a campus-based public university in Ormskirk, Lancashire, England. The university, which originally opened in 1885 as Edge Hill College, was the first non-denominational teacher training college for women in England, befo ...

, mainly for their

paramedic A paramedic is a healthcare professional trained in the medical model, whose main role has historically been to respond to emergency calls for medical help outside of a hospital. Paramedics work as part of the emergency medical services (EMS), ...

and

operating department practitioner In the United Kingdom, operating department practitioners (ODPs) are allied healthcare professionals who are involved in the planning and delivery of perioperative care. As the name suggests, they are primarily employed in surgical operating de ...

courses.

Architecture

The building is

in style, has a

exterior and reaches a maximum height of . The architects Clegg, Fryer & Penman designed the long façade with three slightly protruding pavilions with grossly inflated pilasters and pediments; in the centre the principal pediment is topped by a stumpy tower which breaks through the cornice line. The lowest third of the façade is emphasised by rustication and by having a more elaborate arrangement of windows.Atkins, Philip (1976) ''Guide across Manchester''. Manchester: Civic Trust for the North West ; p. 99

References

{{Manchester B&S Commercial buildings in Manchester Grade II listed buildings in Manchester Grade II listed commercial buildings Towers in Greater Manchester

History

Architecture

See also

References