Church Of St Andrew

The Church of St Andrew is a parish church located in Kirby Bedon, dating back to the 14th century with alterations in the 15th century. An original south porch was constructed in 1479. The church was restored, re-seated, re-roofed, and sections of walls rebuilt in 1876. A new tower and south porch were added in 1885 by R.M. Phipson. The building is constructed from flint with ashlar dressings and slate roofs.

The church comprises a west tower, a nave, and a chancel. The three-stage, square, unbuttressed west tower has string courses marking each stage. A two-light cusped Y tracery window illuminates the west side. Spherical triangles provide light to the ringing chamber. The belfry features two-light quatrefoil vesica windows and a flushwork crenellated parapet.

The gabled south porch, with two-light side windows under square heads, protects a 12th-century south doorway. This doorway is characterized by one order of colonnettes, terminating in a cushion capital to the west and a crocket capital to the east. Square imposts support a round arch with a simple roll moulding. A 13th-century plank doorway is secured with iron strapwork and a circular striking plate. Another 13th-century arched and chamfered north doorway features a plain plank door.

The nave is lit by two 2-light, square-headed, 19th-century Perpendicular windows on each side. Similar windows are visible on the chancel side, with one to the north having been removed to accommodate a 20th-century lean-to vestry. The chancel has a three-light intersecting east window.

Inside, a 19th-century tower arch is present. The nave features a scissor-braced roof installed in 1876, with ashlaring. An octagonal font from the early 15th century has trefoiled statuary niches to each stem, with two cusped arches to each bowl panel. An early 18th-century, polygonal pulpit is also present. Renewed chancel arch responds support a double chamfered arch. The chancel roof is scissor-braced and dates to 1876. 17th-century altar rails exhibit heavy turned balusters. Features include bench sedilia and a plain piscina.

A wall monument to Robert Sheppard and his wife, Anne (dated 1600), is a notable feature. It's a painted plaster and stone structure with an architectural frame and strapwork decoration. A square recessed niche within the frame contains kneeling figures dressed in Elizabethan costume, centered above a strapwork achievement. A predella contains a Latin inscription, and a scrolled apron displays a coat of arms. A brass memorial to William Dussyng and his wife (1505) depicts the figures naked under shrouds, located in the nave. In the chancel, a brass portrays a heart and inscribed ribbon scrolls, though the inscription is now illegible. Various inscriptions relating to missing brasses are found in the nave and chancel.