Parish Church Of The Holy Innocents

The parish church of the Holy Innocents is a Grade I listed building dating back to the 12th century, with alterations from the 14th century and a restoration in 1869. It is constructed primarily of flint rubble with cement rendering and clunch dressings, with a red brick porch in English bond and a roof of handmade red clay tiles.

The church comprises a west tower, a nave, a chancel rebuilt in the 14th century and extended eastwards in 1869, and a south porch around 1500. A north vestry and a new roof were added to the tower in 1869. The west tower, possibly dating back to the early 12th century or earlier, is round and built in three stages, undivided externally, with a repaired northwest wall incorporating brick, timber framing and plaster. The tower arch and spire were reconstructed in 1869. The tower contains a lancet window dating from around 1200, a round-headed loop in the second stage, and another in the bell chamber.

The south wall of the chancel features two windows; the eastern window has two pointed lights with Y-tracery in a 2-centred head, restored, while the western window has two pointed lights from the 19th or 20th century. A 14th-century doorway with chamfered jambs and a 2-centred head, also restored, sits between the windows. There is no chancel arch; its former position is marked by a thickening of the walls. The nave’s north wall houses two 19th-century windows, retaining 14th-century rear arches and splays. Early 16th-century lower and upper doorways, leading to the rood-loft stair, are located at the east end of the north wall, featuring chamfered jambs and 4-centred arches of brick, now blocked. The south wall incorporates two windows: the eastern window is late 15th century, with two cinquefoiled lights under a 4-centred head with a moulded label; the western window is early 14th century, with two trefoiled ogee lights and flowing tracery in a 2-centred head with a moulded label. Further west is a south doorway dating from around 1500, with moulded jambs and a 4-centred arch of brick, previously plastered. The door itself is of V-edged boards with strap-hinges, featuring incised herringbone patterns on a substantially 14th-century design, set within a 19th-century rebuilt frame. The nave roof comprises five canted sections, with a plastered soffit, likely of medieval origin.

The south porch, dating from approximately 1500, has a rebated outer doorway with double-chamfered jambs and a 4-centred head with a moulded label, designed to accommodate gates that are now missing. A niche with a 4-centred arched head is set within the gable, originally blocked with plaster or wood at the back, and now open. An east wall window features two round-headed lights in a square head, while a similar window with pointed arches is found in the west wall. A 14th-century stoup with a plain round head is located to the east of the main door, with V-headed niches in the southeast and southwest corners. The porch roof is of king-post construction, with moulded wallplates and an original framed and panelled timber ceiling, joined with soffit tenons.