A HISTORIC Southampton church that has served the community for almost 90 years has been put up for sale for £1.2m.

Swaythling Methodist Church on Burgess Road has been put on the market and is for sale from £1,200,000.

The Grade II listed building is believed to date back to 1932 and was designed by Herbert Collins.

In 1926 the first local authority houses on the Northern side of Burgess Road were built and shortly after local architect Collins began the development of houses in Stoneham Lane and Ethelburt Avenue as part of his Bassett Green Estate.

To meet the new and growing community’s need for religious worship the Church of England built the impressive church of St Albans in Tulip Road in 1933 to replace the old tin tabernacle church of St Agnes in Portswood Road.

A little earlier in 1928 William Collins, the father of Herbert, had offered the Methodist Church land in Burgess Road at Swaythling valued at £1,000 on which to build a church as well as educational and recreational facilities.

This land was opposite the site of Burgess Street Farm, where the Argentine General Juan Manuel de Rosas lived in the late 19th century following his exile, and on the site of the Langhorn Gate Boundary Stone.

In addition to the land Collins also offered to donate £10,000 towards the cost of the building.

The land and the donation were accepted and Joseph Rank of Flour Mill fame promised a further £11,000 towards the building costs which were not expected to exceed £25,000.

Collins used buff bricks with alternate red brick headers to construct an octagonal building with a copper clad domed roof with a copper clad cupola.

The building was in his favoured Neo-Georgian style and could accommodate 1,000 worshippers.

Now the building is on sale, and has been advertised by property agent Dominic Arkell as residential or "other opportunities".

Measuring in at 14,575 Sq Ft, the church is constructed with a steel frame with brick elevations under a domed roof with parapets.

The two-storey building includes dance studios, changing rooms, and office and hall.