Church Of St Giles

Church of St Giles

This is a parish church with origins in the 14th century, substantially expanded and altered over subsequent centuries. The chancel dates from around 1300, with the tower constructed during the 14th or 15th centuries. The north aisle was added in 1609, while the south aisle is from 1842. The north aisle was extended, a vestry added, and the church extensively restored in 1885.

The building comprises an aisled nave, chancel, west tower, north vestry, and south porch. It is constructed predominantly of sandstone ashlar with plain-tile roofs, though the chancel is built of sandstone rubble with some imitation ashlar and rendered finish, topped with a concrete-tile roof. Throughout the building, coped gable parapets feature gablet kneelers.

The chancel has a 2-bay layout and features diagonal and south buttresses of one offset. Its most prominent feature is the 3-light east window of around 1300 with intersecting tracery and head stops. Most openings are framed with hood moulds. The south doorway is chamfered and carries a 19th-century door with applied Y-tracery. A double-chamfered south-east lancet has foliage stops, and a small south-west lancet is also present. The square stack stands at the north-east corner. A moulded north doorway has double-leaf doors.

The vestry has a splay and moulded plinth with a diagonal buttress. Its 4-centred 2-light east window features Y-tracery with a datestone below.

The south aisle and central porch are symmetrical in design, with splay plinths and moulded dentil cornices. Both have diagonal and other buttresses of two offsets. The porch features buttresses flush with its front, an arch of two moulded orders with chamfered jambs, late 20th-century double-leaf doors, and a trefoiled lancet niche above. The south aisle has 3-light east and west windows and 2-light south windows, all with flowing tracery and head stops.

The nave and north aisle feature shield and hood moulds in their east gables. The 2-bay north aisle has an old eastern diagonal buttress and 19th-century western diagonal and north buttresses. Its late Perpendicular-style 3-light windows are dated: the eastern window is inscribed 1609, the western 1885. A similar west window probably dates from 1885.

The Perpendicular tower has two stages with a high double moulded plinth. Its diagonal buttresses of four offsets merge into clasping buttresses at the top. The west window is a 3-light opening with deep hollow-chamfered jambs, above which sits a small blind quatrefoil panel. Small chamfered straight-headed openings flank each side. A moulded string course divides the stages. The bell-chamber has 2-light openings with cusped Y-tracery. The tower is topped with an embattled parapet and pinnacles.

The interior is plastered throughout. The chancel has a 19th-century arched brace roof and features a chancel arch of two moulded orders with chamfered jambs, hood mould, and head stops. The nave has late 19th-century Perpendicular-style 3-bay arcades with two chamfered orders, octagonal piers and responds. The tower arch comprises two segmental-pointed chamfered arches. The king-post roof has shaped brackets and is ceiled above the collar beam. The south aisle roof is also ceiled above its collar beam and features chamfered wall posts on corbels.

The church retains significant fittings and monuments. A late 19th-century Early-English-style octagonal stone pulpit and late 19th-century font are present. The stained glass includes an east window of 1866 and south lancets dated around 1872.

Wall monuments include: in the north aisle, a slate panel to John Phillips (1716) set in a moulded stone surround within an architectural framework of Corinthian pilasters, with panel and broken segmental pediment and crest. In the chancel, monuments to Samuel Brooks (1779 and family, probably erected around 1825) and Ann Brooks (1839) in simple Grecian style on the north and south respectively.