Winstanley Hall

Listed building in Greater Manchester, England

Winstanley Hall

Winstanley Hall in 2006

General information
Architectural style| Tudor
Address| Winstanley, Greater Manchester, England
Coordinates| 53°31′21″N 2°41′14″W﻿ / ﻿53.522389°N 2.687351°W﻿ / 53.522389; -2.687351
Year(s) built| c. 1573
Renovated| 1811–19, 1843
Technical details
Floor count| 2 / 3
Designations|

Listed Building – Grade II*

Official name| Winstanley Hall
Designated| 23 August 1966
Reference no.| 1287365

Winstanley Hall is a late 16th-century house in Winstanley, in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester, England.[1][2] It is listed as a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a grade II* listed building.[3][4] Originally built for the Winstanley family, the building is one of only three Tudor buildings in the Borough.[2]

## History

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The hall was built c. 1573[4] for the Winstanley family of Winstanley, who were lords of the manor since at least 1252 and may have been responsible for building the moat on the site.[2] The Winstanleys owned the hall until 1596, when the estate was sold to James Bankes, a London goldsmith and banker.[5] Winstanley Hall has three storeys and has a date stone with a date of 1584, but this is not in situ so may not provide an accurate date for the construction of the house.[1] Extra blocks were added in the 17th and 18th centuries. Further and extensive alterations were made in 1811–19 by Lewis Wyatt in a Jacobean style. He moved the entrance to the left flank of the hall and replaced the original entrance with a window.[1] The final additions to the hall were made in 1843 when a two-storey extra wing was added. To the south, on lands belonging to the hall, is a small stone building which was used to house bears that provided entertainment for the hall's guests.[6] The Winstanley family also owned the Braunstone Hall estate in Leicestershire.

The Bankes family retained ownership of the hall until the 21st century when it was sold for private development. The hall had been kept in good condition until the 1960s when the family moved out; it was last occupied in the 1980s. As the building decayed and the cost of maintaining the hall was too much for the family, it was sold on in 2000 with 10 acres (4.0 ha) of land.[7][2] It had been reported in 2019 that the new owner intended to develop the hall into private flats, and that refurbishment was held up due to problems with planning permission, although it had also been reported that no application for planning permission had been submitted.[5][7] As of January 2022, the building is in poor condition and in danger of collapsing, with a leaking roof, collapsed floors, and widespread dry rot.[8]

In May 2025, it was announced that the current owner, Kingswood Homes, intends to restore the hall and convert it into homes. A planning application has not yet been submitted to Wigan Council.[9]

## See also

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* Greater Manchester portal

* Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester
* Listed buildings in Billinge and Winstanley
* Scheduled Monuments in Greater Manchester

## References

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1. ^ a b c "Winstanley Hall". Pastscape.org.uk. Retrieved 7 January 2008.
2. ^ a b c d "Winstanley Hall". Wigan Archaeological Society. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
3. ^ "Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Wigan". Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council. Archived from the original on 6 March 2007. Retrieved 30 December 2007.
4. ^ a b Historic England. "Winstanley Hall (1287365)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
5. ^ a b "Newsletter #52". Wigan Archaeological Society. April 2002. Retrieved 19 June 2008.
6. ^ "Newsletter #53". Wigan Archaeological Society. May 2002. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
7. ^ a b Howarth, Rachel (1 February 2019). "Fears grow over plan for Wigan landmark". Wigan Today. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
8. ^ Clarke, Gaynor (27 January 2022). "Calls made to protect vacant historic building in Wigan from collapse". Wigan Today. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
9. ^ Spina-Matthews, Sarah (9 May 2025). "Plans to restore and convert 16th-century manor". BBC News. Retrieved 9 May 2025.

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Winstanley Hall.

* Winstanley Hall photos on Wigan World and single photo and more photos and discussion
* Heritage at Risk Register: Winstanley+Hall

*[c.]: circa