Layton Cemetery Chapel, Blackpool

Tucked inside Layton Cemetery on Talbot Road, the Layton Cemetery Chapel stands as a striking reminder of Victorian-era craftsmanship and civic ambition. Built in 1873 by the Preston-based firm Garlick, Park, and Sykes, the chapel is a fine example of High Victorian Gothic design, purpose-built to serve the newly opened cemetery that replaced the overburdened Blackpool Parish Church graveyard.

The chapel is a single-story, three-bay structure defined by its central tower-composed of three stepped stages and topped with an octagonal spire pierced by trefoil-headed belfry windows and lucarnes. The architecture leans into the dramatic: tall pointed doors, hood moldings, lancet windows, decorative ridge tiles, and coped gables all contribute to its distinctive silhouette. Once part of a trio of chapels catering to Anglican, Catholic, and Non-Conformist denominations, only the Anglican chapel remains today-now a Grade II listed building.

Although unused since the 1980s and currently boarded up, the chapel continues to serve as a visual and historical landmark within the 40-acre cemetery. Layton Cemetery itself, administered by Blackpool Council, features around 17,300 graves and includes sections for Anglican, Catholic, Non-Conformist, Muslim, and Jewish burials. The cemetery also houses a World War I memorial and the grave of Superintendent Gerald Richardson, a recipient of the George Cross.

Visitors to Layton Cemetery are welcome daily. The original lodge near the main gates now hosts the Friends group and cemetery office, but once housed Superintendent John Wray and his family of eleven. With its quiet avenues, historic layout, and enduring architecture, Layton Cemetery-and its chapel-remain essential to Blackpool’s heritage.