Church Of St Peter

The Church of St Peter is a parish church dating primarily to the mid-13th century, with substantial remodelling in the 15th century. It was restored in 1867. The church is constructed of flint with ashlar dressings and slate roofs. A three-stage west tower stands prominently on a plinth of ashlar blocks, featuring diagonal buttresses with flushwork and a stair tower to the south-east. The west door is elaborately decorated with three orders of wave mouldings below a three-light transomed window. Belfry windows have two lights but lack tracery. A gabled south porch, adorned with a coped parapet, shelters a moulded door with a statuary niche above. The porch’s roof features arched braces on wall posts, a ridge piece, and single butt purlins.

The main body of the church incorporates a mid-13th century nave, north aisle, and chancel. The nave’s south side presents three renewed three-light Perpendicular windows above a string course. The chancel south and north sides feature two renewed three-light windows, originally dating from around 1380, exhibiting tall cusped lights with super mullions rising from divisions and apexes of arches, and cusped to form panels. The east window, also from around 1380, is a five-light design with rising central mullions forming panel tracery in the head, flanked by paired lights ornamented with mouchettes.

Inside, the north arcade is octagonal, spanning four bays with moulded capitals and bases supporting double chamfered arches. The nave is characterised by a fine King post roof, featuring tie beams on arched braces rising from corbels to principals, all with moulded detail. Single butt purlins, a battlemented wall plate, and boxed ashlaring complete the roof’s structure. Aisle roofing dates to 1867. A tall, triple chamfered tower arch and a chancel arch with hollows and waves demonstrate a Perpendicular style. The church also contains a 15th-century sedilia and piscina; the sedilia comprises three crocketed and cusped ogee arches with close panelled spandrels, and the piscina is similar but with pierced spandrels. The chancel roof employs principals on wall posts, single butt purlins, a ridge piece, and fleuron bosses. An arm chandelier, possibly from the 17th century, illuminates the space. A late 14th-century octagonal pedestal font is covered by an early 17th-century scrolled font cover. Fragments of a rood screen, originally from around 1328 but moved in 1528, form a screen in the tower, featuring square stiles above a plain base in two-light bays divided by circular muntins, with intersecting tracery. A 15th-century iron-bound chest and a late 13th-century timber south door are also present. The church retains poppy head benches, although many details are from the 19th century.