Church Of St Leonard

The Church of St Leonard is a church with a history spanning several centuries, notably incorporating elements from the 12th century, 15th century, and 19th century. It is situated off Main Street in Skerne.

The church comprises a 12th-century nave and chancel, a 15th-century west tower, and a 19th-century vestry and south porch. The construction materials are ashlar, with the nave and chancel rendered and flagstone dressings; the roofs are covered with graduated slate.

The west tower, consisting of two stages, displays a moulded plinth, diagonal buttresses, hollow-chamfered string courses, and an embattled parapet with corner obelisks. Belfry openings feature 2 lights with 19th-century tracery in a Perpendicular style. A 3-light west window also incorporates 19th-century tracery in the Perpendicular style and a hood mould. The nave features chamfered plinth and buttresses, along with 2-light square-headed windows with 19th-century tracery and hood moulds. A round-headed south door exhibits a continuous roll-moulding and a beakhead. The chancel has a low-side lancet to the west and a two-light window on the east. The east window is notable for its Curvilinear tracery under a pointed head, with a raised coped gable. The interior contains 12th-century responds to 19th-century imposts, and a double-chamfered pointed tower arch. A blocked round-headed door in the nave’s west wall, north of the tower arch, likely led to a former external stair turret. There's a blocked early 13th-century north arcade with quatrefoil piers, abaci, and fillet to the east respond, supporting double-chamfered pointed arches. A blocked piscina sits within the south wall. The chancel arch is 12th-century, with attached shafts, cushion capitals exhibiting volutes and human masks, and quirk and chamfer imposts extending as a string. A squint is situated to the north of the chancel arch, and the chancel’s north wall contains a blocked sedilium. Three effigies, re-set in the blocked west arch of the former north arcade, depict a knight, a woman, and a baby. The church also houses a 19th-century octagonal font. Numerous pieces of beakhead have been incorporated into the walls, which also bear traces of black-letter inscriptions. The lower stage of the west tower is believed to enclose an earlier structure.