Church Of St Andrew

The Church of St Andrew is a parish church dating back to around 1200, with a chancel from the 14th century and a west tower built in the 15th century when the church was remodelled. It was restored in 1844 and 1868. The church is constructed of carstone and flint with ashlar dressings and slate roofs. The three-stage west tower has diagonal buttresses to the second stage, featuring ogeed statuary niches. It has a 4-centred west door below a 3-light stiled Perpendicular window, and 2-light cusped Y tracery belfry windows. A brick parapet sits above a string course of saltire crosses, topped with a lead-covered conical roof. An octagonal brick stair turret is located to the south-east. The south porch is gabled with 2-light square side windows, diagonal buttresses, and knapped flint facing, featuring inset ashlar tracery, emblems and shields relating to St Andrew, and a panel depicting St Andrew. The inner south doorway, dating to around 1200, has one order of shafts, water-leaf capitals, a double roll moulding in the pointed arch, and a double billet moulding in the hood. An arched holywater stoup is positioned to the right. The porch roof has a moulded ridge piece, arched collars, and purlins of probable 15th-century origin. A 3-light C15 panel tracery window is to the left of the porch, with a 2-light late 13th-century Y tracery window to the right, including a transom. A further 3-light flat-headed window with cusped lights is also present. The chancel has a continuous string course that rises to form a hood over the priest’s door. It includes two 2-light reticulated chancel windows to the south, one to the north, and diagonal east buttresses. The east window is a 3-light flowing design of mouchette form from around 1330. Three lancets to the north nave date to around 1200, with one positioned over a blocked north door that itself is blocked. One 3-light C15 panel tracery window is also situated on this side. Internally, a tall wave moulded tower arch and a double chamfered chancel arch are present. The north nave lancets have deeply splayed reveals. The nave and chancel roofs are braced with a scissor design dating to 1868. Rood stairs survive. An ogeed C15 statuary niche is located on the north side of the chancel arch, cinquefoiled with crockets, finials, and fleurons within a rectangular surround. A fine set of box pews, dating to 1623, are aligned along the north nave, featuring carved arcading on the side panels and gates. The gates have elongated ball finials and butterfly, H, HL, and cockshead hinges. Stepped bench sedilia are found in the chancel, alongside an arched piscina with mouchette tracery head. C14 floor tiles, exhibiting geometric and floral glazed decoration, are laid in the sanctuary.