Church Of St Mary

The Church of St Mary is a parish church largely dating back to the 14th and 15th centuries. It is constructed primarily of flint rubble walling, with plastered chancel walls, and dressed with freestone. The roofs are mainly slated, with leaded, low-pitched aisle roofs. The church comprises a nave, chancel, west tower, north and south aisles, and a north vestry.

The mid-14th century tower incorporates a reset round-arched west doorway, possibly of 12th-century origin, with a later hoodmould. It features Y-traceried and dagger-traceried belfry windows, grotesque gargoyles, and pinnacles. A red brick stair turret was added to the south side in the 16th century. The mid-14th century aisles consist of five bays, featuring octagonal columns with moulded capitals, and eastern side windows with early Perpendicular tracery, although the east end windows display Decorated tracery in a net form. The chancel also has late 14th-century side windows with square heads. A south chancel doorway, dating from around 1300, has a hoodmould that stops upon a pair of carved crowns. Remodelling of the west ends of both aisles and the construction of a south porch likely occurred in the early 15th century. The early 16th century brought the east window. Around 1500, the aisles were raised, and clerestories were added to the nave. In the side walls, at high level, are two inscriptions carved in limestone panels, one requesting prayer for Sir James Hobart, Attorney-General under Henry VII.

The nave features a fine hammerbeam roof, spanning ten bays, with an upper tier of hammerbeams supporting arch braces up to collars and short kingposts. Wallposts are designed as pinnacled canopies, beneath which carved figures likely stood between clerestory windows. The roof is highly enriched, and the canopy of honour is brightly painted. Contemporary lean-to aisle roofs include carved bosses and moulded wall plates. The chancel roof is cambered with arch bracing and is also fully coloured. The rood screen has good tracery, although the lower panels were removed in the 19th century. A south side doorway and stairs lead to the rood loft. The roofs and screen were restored in 1860 and 1864 by W Butterfield.

The church contains an octagonal font dating from around 1500, adorned with angels bearing shields and roses, and further supporting angels beneath the bowl. There are two good 15th-century benches with poppyhead ends and figures upon the buttresses, as well as traceried ends and backs. Additional benches, dating from the late 16th/early 17th centuries, have plain poppyheads. Above the chancel arch is a doom wall painting. Wall tablets commemorate George Pretyman (1732) and his widow (1738), and a painted memorial honors Thomas Smyth (1702). The south aisle holds at least seven 18th-century marble floor slabs.