Church of St Andrew

Church of St Andrew

A church of Norman origin with significant medieval additions and substantial Victorian restoration. The building dates from the 11th and 12th centuries, with a 13th-century tower, 15th-century additions and alterations, and major restoration work carried out between 1860 and 1862 by architect J H Hakewill of London (nave) and E Christian of Lincoln (chancel).

The church is constructed of limestone rubble and squared limestone with limestone ashlar dressings, and has a plate roof. It comprises a west tower, a five-bay nave with four-bay aisles, north and south porches, a three-bay chancel with adjoining vestry on the north side, and a plinth running around the base.

The most striking feature is the massive three-stage 13th-century tower with setback and central pilaster buttresses. Stair lighting slits appear in the south-west angle. The west door is pointed and flanked by buttresses, featuring three shafted orders with stiff-leaf capitals and a pointed arch decorated with dog-tooth and roll mouldings. Above this is a lancet window with dripmould and carved head stops; a lancet on the north face has a 19th-century head. A moulded string-course separates the first and second stages, with narrow splayed lights to the south and west faces. A second moulded string-course marks the third stage. The belfry openings are paired, shafted designs with shaft rings and hood-moulds. The tower is crowned by a 15th-century battlemented parapet with a south-west corner turret and crocketed finials.

The nave's south aisle features buttresses and pointed three-light windows with Perpendicular tracery, plain dripmoulds and head stops, a similar west window, and a five-light east window. The north aisle has angle buttresses, one square-headed two-light traceried window with hood-mould, two three-light windows similar to those in the south aisle, a similar east window, and a small square-headed two-light west window. A 15th-century nave clerestory contains five triangular-headed two-light windows with prominent hood-moulds and head stops.

The south porch was rebuilt as a baptistry in the 19th century and contains paired south lancets beneath a dripmould, with a pointed chamfered door in the west wall. A 13th-century inner door features two orders—a plain outer shaft and a filleted inner shaft with stiff-leaf capitals—and a pointed arch with dog-tooth mouldings. The north porch has a 19th-century pointed outer arch flanked by buttresses and a plain moulded pointed inner door.

The chancel's north side displays two lancets and a projecting 19th-century vestry with a tall gable-end stack. The south side has three lancets, one needle-lancet, and a reset priest's door with a chevron-moulded round arch. Its tympanum is decorated with close-beaded interlace and foliate motifs. The east end has 19th-century stepped lancets with a small quatrefoil above.

Inside, the north arcade consists of double-chamfered arches with carved head stops, supported by two cylindrical piers with water-holding bases and carved capitals featuring animal, head and foliate decoration. Two similar responds flank the arcade, alongside one octagonal pier with plain moulded base and capital. All piers have octagonal abaci and tall square plinths. The south arcade also has double-chamfered arches with dripmoulds and head stops, set on octagonal shafts and responds with plain moulded bases, capitals and tall square plinths.

The south aisle contains a piscina and projecting statue bases. The north aisle has an aumbry and piscina with a decorated projecting bowl. The massive tower arch was reopened in 1861, revealing twin openings with an original central cylindrical pier and responds featuring water-holding bases and moulded capitals. These support tall 19th-century double-chamfered arches beneath a single pointed arch containing a trefoiled circle in the spandrel. The chancel arch is a 19th-century pointed shafted design.

The chancel features deeply-splayed lancets and a fine series of Romanesque carved head corbels supporting the 19th-century roof. Notable monuments include a mutilated 13th-century crusader effigy in the south aisle. An octagonal font bowl sits on a 20th-century base.