Church Of All Saints

Church of All Saints

A parish church of mixed dates, with a tower of 12th or 13th-century origin that was raised in the 14th century. The nave, south porch and chancel were rebuilt in the 15th century. In 1860–2 the chancel underwent thorough restoration with the addition of a north transept and north vestry. The building was refenestrated and the tower restored in 1877–8.

The church is constructed of flint rubble with ashlar dressings, roofed with grey Staffordshire tiles laid decoratively in bands. It comprises a short nave with south porch and north vestry, a chancel as wide and slightly shorter than the nave with a north transept, and a round west tower.

The tower is tall in proportion to the rest of the building and incorporates some bricks within the flint rubble. On its west face is a 13th-century lancet window with a hollow chamfered surround, above which sits a small quatrefoil opening. A string course separates the 14th-century octagonal belfry stage, which has irregular quoining and four twin louvred openings with curvilinear traceried arched heads. Another string course marks the transition to a 15th-century English bond red brick parapet.

The nave's west wall is unbuttressed with a half-height offset and coped parapet. On the south side of the nave are two 2-light 19th-century windows following 15th-century precedents, with traceried arched heads, stone quoins and voussoirs. The gabled and unbuttressed south porch features an outer double chamfered pointed arch with hoodmould, and above it a cusped niche with ogee hoodmould; the gable parapet is coped with a ridge cross. The porch's inner entrance has a 15th-century wave and hollow moulded pointed arch with hoodmould, an old boarded door with iron strap hinges, and a stoup with semi-circular bowl in the east jamb of the entrance arch. Lancet windows are set in the porch returns.

The north side of the nave is similar in treatment, though the north porch has been replaced by a 19th-century vestry; there is a 2-light window to the exterior and a coped gable parapet. The inner entrance arch matches the south entrance in its 15th-century wave and hollow moulded form with a similar door. Coped gable parapets with ridge crosses crown both the nave and chancel to the east. A 19th-century 2-stage buttress stands to the south where the nave meets the chancel.

The chancel is almost entirely of 19th-century construction. Its south wall has a central pointed arched door with a datestone of 1861, flanked by a 2-light window with unusual tracery. A 3-light east window is present, with a south-east 2-stage diagonal buttress and north-east 2-stage angle buttresses. The north transept has a 2-light window in its north gable end; its east return features two trefoil openings and its west return has a door and a datestone of 1862.

The interior begins with a sharply pointed, unarticulated low tower arch. In the nave, early brickwork survives to the broad rear arches of three windows. Rood loft stairs to the north have a hollow chamfered lower opening leading to an upper opening with early brickwork and a restored segmental head. On the south side stands a 15th-century piscina with cusped head and a round-headed niche for an image. The roof is ceiled in 19th-century work with applied bosses and ribbing, though 16th and 17th-century moulded wall plates remain. The pointed chancel arch is executed in polychrome brick—red, yellow and black—with respond caps and bases. Similar polychrome brickwork appears to all chancel and transept openings.

A 15th-century font in the chancel features a simple octagonal bowl with moulded cap and base to an octagonal stem. A richly panelled Gothic pulpit of 1861, with crockets and finials, stands alongside a Gothic reading desk. The chancel's south wall contains a piscina with a chamfered pointed arch, while the north wall is dominated by a substantial monument to J. Castleton (died 1727) and his family, executed in varied marbles. This includes a projecting pedestal with moulded base and cornice, surmounted by busts of Castleton and his wife, three oval medallion busts of children, an aedicular surround with fluted pilasters, an open pediment on consoles crowned by arms in a cartouche and two funerary urns. Adjacent are 17th and 18th-century tomb slabs. Two late 18th-century headstones have been reset in the north transept. A plain marble tablet on the chancel's south wall commemorates R. Clarke (died 1832) and his wife, with arms above. The chancel displays late 19th-century stained glass. The chancel roof has collars to king posts with applied bosses.