Description:Convent of Our Lady of Mercy, Hunters Road, Handsworth. Built to the designs of A.W. Pugin, St Mary’s Convent opened in 1841, a few months after St Chad’s Cathedral opened a mile down the road.
Benefactors of the convent included John Hardman, of Hardman & Co (stained glass manufacturers) and John Talbot, 16th Early of Shrewsbury who both wanted to address poverty in Birmingham.
The Convent is home to the Sisters of Mercy, founded by Catherine McAuley in Dublin in 1831. John Hardman’s daughter, Juliana became the first superior of the convent. It was decided that as St Mary’s was the last house founded by Catherine McAuley it should continue as a Spirituality, Associates and Heritage Centre.