Church Of St Margaret

The Church of St Margaret is a parish church dating primarily from the 13th century, with a late 14th-century tower and spire. It is constructed of stone with Barnack stone dressings, and has roofs of lead, copper, and slates, with a modern gault brick chancel. The tower is of three stages and features a moulded plinth and embattled parapet. Its angle buttresses are varied in shape—semi-hexagonal, semi-octagonal, and diagonal—and are finished with gabled and crocketed pinnacles. The spire, rebuilt in 1911, retains original spire lights in two upper stages. A south porch was rebuilt in 1887, incorporating older materials. The church includes 13th-century aisles and nave arcades dating around 1300. Flying buttresses cross the aisles, and thicker octagonal piers mark the original crossing. The nave features a fine 15th-century roof with a Decorated rood bay, bosses, and angels at the ends of the principal rafters. A Romano-British sarcophagus was found in the vestry during excavations in 1889, along with a vase of caster-ware (which was stolen within the last five years). An octagonal font with plain arch decoration stands on a central circular shaft with four octagonal columns. Stained glass insets, with armorial bearings relating to the Dickens and Hildesley families, date to around 1740, while fragments of earlier glass are present in the east window of the north aisle. A modern engraved glass partition is located in the tower arch, designed by David Peace. The church also contains early 17th-century chests with two hinged lids on turned legs.