The building was designed by ubiquitous local architects Austin & Paley, reviving a 14th Century 'Decorated' gothic style. The external walls match the appearence of the main school, using the same local sandstone and reproducing the curious polygonal pattern. It was opened by the Bishop of Liverpool on 3 November 1888, 24 years (to the day) after the Hospital itself opened, on the birthday of the Hospital's founder, Julia Ripley who had died in 1881.
The chapel was Grade II* Listed in 1970.