Church Of St Simon And St Jude

COCKSHUTT C.P. SHREWSBURY ROAD SJ 42 NW (north-east side) 12/59 Church of St. Simon and - St. Jude [formerly listed as Church of St. Helen 27.5.53 (or SS Simon and Jude)] GV II Chapel-of-ease, now parish church. 1777 on site of C16 or earlier chapel; restored 1886. Red brick; slate roofs with coped verges on carved stone kneelers. Nave; polygonal apsidal chancel and west tower; south porch and north-east vestry of 1886-7 Tower. In 3 unequal stages, top stage (belfry) slightly recessed with corner pilasters terminating in stone pyramids to plain brick parapet; stone pyramids also to centre of each face. Belfry has round-headed louvred windows on all sides and round-headed window to second stage on west. Blind roundel to bottom stage on west and round-headed plank door to south with clock dated 1789 above to second stage. Nave. South side has broad pointed lancets with gauged heads, one to left and 2 to right of late C19 open gabled timber porch over late C18 flush-panelled double doors. North side also has broad lancets in corresponding position; corbelled eaves cornices to both sides. West wall has round-headed window to either side of tower and,east wall has narrow chamfered stone lancet inserted above apse in early C20. Chancel. Late C19 broad stone lancets with hoodmoulds to east, south-east and north-east faces corbelled eaves cornice. Polygonal vestry (1887) projecting at 45° angle to north- east has segmental-pointed cast-iron fixed-light windows to north and east sides; moulded eaves cornice. Small chimney stack slightly project- ing at north-east corner of nave. Interior. Crown-post roof in 5 bays to nave, boarded in late C19; ribbed wooden vault to apse probably also c.1886. Pointed and chamfered chancel arch rests on late C19 corbelled responds carved with foliage decoration; pointed chamfered doorway to left leads to vestry. No access from nave to tower but apparently infilled half-arch (probably leading to former gallery) is visible inside tower. Late C19 benches and octagonal font. Pulpit installed in 1888 incorporates C17 decorated panelling and has C19 super- scription around top "Be ye doers of the word not hearers only". Some C17 rectangular oak panelling also reused as wainscoting to adjacent wall. Screen (1937) at west end of nave originally stood at east end around raised chancel. Late C17 or early C18 communion rails with slender turned balusters, hinged in 3 sections, are also now situated at west end. Sanctuary has black and white tile floor, alabaster reredos (1904) and alabaster facing to walls (1912). Stained glass: sanctuary windows by Kempe (1896) in memory of Charles Backhouse Robinson (died 1894) and family; glass in nave 1894. No monuments of note. Originally a dependent chapelry of Ellesmere, the church was formerly dedicated to St. Helen, and did not acquire parochial status until 1868. B.o.E. p.111; D.H.S. Cranage, The Churches of Shropshire, Part 9 (1908), p. 748; appendix, p. 986.

Listing NGR: SJ4348129220