Old Church Of Saint Werburg

The Old Church of Saint Werburg is a redundant church with a long history, largely reconstructed in the 17th century. The north aisle dates to the late 16th century, while the west front and south aisle were built in 1645. The north transept also originates from the late 16th century. The chancel and vestry were constructed in the early 17th century, and the sanctuary and tower (at the east end) in 1711. The church is mainly built of ashlar sandstone, with English garden wall bond brick for the chancel, and has a timber internal frame. The north aisle is timber-framed and features a graduated Kerridge stone slate roof.

The building comprises a nave with aisles under a common roof, and a west door. The south aisle has a datestone above a blocked doorway that once led to a gallery, alongside a 5-light and a 2-light double-chamfered mullion window, and a later 2-light chamfered window. The brick chancel aisle, built upon a stone plinth, has a 3-light flat-faced mullion window and is roofed axially. The square tower features 2 semi-circular brick arches at belfry level, a stone eaves cornice, and 6 sugar loaf pinnacles. The east face of the tower has a semi-circular headed doorway with a dated keystone and an oval light above. The west end has four buttresses that rise only slightly above the stone plinth. The central studded and cross-battened door has a chamfered semi-circular head, and a 3-light window above it.

The north aisle, featuring two bays, is close studded with a middle rail, plaster infill, and sits upon a stone plinth. It has 3 or 4-light timber mullioned leaded windows, and a blocked doorway (formerly to a gallery) with a semi-circular head and carved responds. The chancel projects slightly with a coped gable and kneelers, and a 3-light east window.

Inside, the 2-bay nave has a massive arcade supported by tie-beam trusses and an arcade plate, both braced diagonally. Where the chancel meets the nave, a cluster of posts – 3 on the north and 4 on the south – indicate various periods of construction and repair. The 3-bay chancel has a braced tie-beam truss with diagonal struts and two arch-braced collar trusses. A bell dated 1575 is present, as is an octagonal font inscribed “William Drinkwater the Keeper 1603.” There is a Jacobean pulpit, an altar dated 1645, and a 17th-century turned baluster altar rail, which was adapted to accommodate choir seats in 1857. Box pews date to 1813. The stained glass east window by Wailes and the Minton sanctuary floor tiles were added in 1857. A sarcophagus, potentially dating back to the 12th century, is also located within the church.