Church of St John

The Church of St John is a parish church built between 1852 and 1853 by John Gibson. It is constructed from rock-faced, almost vermiculated, coursed dark sandstone and features banded tiled roofs with verge parapets on corbelled kneelers. The church is large and designed in the Early English style, comprising a north tower, nave, west porch, aisles, chancel, south chapel, and south porch.

The tower is located at the north-east corner of the north aisle and is square with four stages, featuring five-stage angle buttresses. There are strings between the stages and below the bell chamber, along with a corbelled cornice adorned with gargoyles at the angles beneath the parapet. The bell chamber has two-light pointed openings on its north face, and there is a pointed north door. An octagonal stair turret is attached to the south-west angle of the tower.

The nave is notably long, with only one bay visible beyond the aisles at the west end, which has three-light pointed windows on the sides and a rose window above a small gabled porch. The north aisle is slightly lower than the nave and has four bays running up to the tower, divided by heavy two-stage buttresses, with strings at the cills and imposts, and three-light pointed windows. The south aisle also has a gabled end and three exposed bays, with the west bay featuring a gabled porch that has a labelled pointed arch over 20th-century part-glazed doors. The two eastern bays lead into the south chapel, which is similar in style to the nave and aisles but has only two-light windows on the south side.

The chancel consists of two bays and matches the overall style of the church, featuring three-stage gabletted buttresses and a five-light pointed east window. The east end of the chancel presents a complex arrangement of gables with five profiles visible.