Church Of St John The Baptist

The Church of St John the Baptist is a parish church primarily built in the 12th and 14th centuries, with later roofs added over the nave and chancel. The structure is made of flint and brick, featuring limestone dressings, and is topped with slate roofs on the nave and chancel, while the porch has black glazed pantiles. The church includes a west tower, nave, chancel, and a south porch. The round west tower dates back to the 12th century and has 14th century two-light bell openings, along with a later embattled parapet that has brick dressings and coping.

The south porch, a fine example from the 14th century, has been extensively patched and repaired. It features large diagonally-set niches flanking the entrance, which has an arch supported by trefoil responds, with the remains of a niche above. Both the east and west walls of the porch have three closely set openings with cusped arches. The south doorway, dating from the 12th century, is particularly elaborate, consisting of three orders of shafts with scallop and volute capitals, and an arch of three orders with fillets between the major orders.

The windows of the nave and chancel are generally early 14th century, showcasing a rich variety of Decorated motifs, including ball-flower and head stops on the hood moulds. The east window has been restored and features five lights. The east gable is parapeted and supported by moulded stone kneelers, topped with a gable cross. There is one square-headed north nave window with two lights, which is subdivided at the head and has a hood mould with head stops. The north wall of the chancel has been rebuilt in brick and includes pilaster-buttresses, as well as a large staged buttress at the north-east corner. The north doorway, dating from the 12th century, has two orders of shafts.

Inside, the window reveals have attached shafts and hood moulds with head stops. The chancel arch is supported by responds with foliage capitals. There is a 14th century piscina located in the south-east corner of the chancel, featuring two arches and a central shaft. A memorial slab with a brass inset commemorates Sir Anthony Gaudy, who died on March 30th, 1642. Some fragments of medieval glass can be found in the south chancel window. The semi-circular tower arch is unmoulded and has slab imposts, while the octagonal font is adorned with quatrefoiled panels around the bowl and a panelled stem.