Church of St Stephen

Church of St Stephen

A brick church with rough-cast render and stone dressings, topped with a slate roof. Originally built as a Methodist chapel in 1837, it was converted to a Church of England church in 1910-11, when a north porch and short transepts to the north and south were added.

The exterior features a gabled roof with a cross finial at the east end and coped parapets running east and west; the western parapet is angular with a raised centre. The principal north elevation displays a gabled entrance porch with an arched opening surmounted by a cross finial. A bell protected by a bracketed timber hood is attached to the wall to the right of the porch. The nave has two single round-headed windows on both the north and south elevations, each with stone surrounds and stained glass. The west elevation contains a central round-headed window, while the east end has three stained glass windows. Both north and south transepts have pent roofs, lit by a single oculus and two pairs of round-headed windows with diamond leaded-lights.

The interior is plainly embellished with quarry tile and timber floor coverings and a timber-clad ceiling supported on stone corbels, with carved bosses over the sanctuary.

The sanctuary at the east end has a raised floor of encaustic tiles, generally red with interspersed tiles bearing yellow fleur-de-lis. Carved wall panels depicting linen-fold in relief with a red-painted background feature an intricate carved frieze above, topped by finials. Carved menorah stand on either side of the sanctuary opening. The three east windows depict Christ in Majesty centrally flanked by Saints and are dedicated to members of the Carden family. The altar, said to be Elizabethan, was brought from Great Shefford church; the altar rails date from the late 20th century. Behind the choir pews is coffered panelling; the pews themselves have simple carving.

The nave displays distinctive half-height panelling with carved friezes featuring lettering in relief on a red-painted background, thought to be created by Captain Burmester to commemorate the community's fallen soldiers from the First World War. The carved frieze reads: "Herewithall shall a young man cleanse his way even by ruling himself after thy word" on the north side, continuing on the south side with "and take heed unto the thing that is right for that shall bring a man peace at the last". On the north side next to the pulpit are the symbols of alpha, omega and the Chi-Rho. The panelling dates to 1935. At the west end it reads "All things come to an end but thy commandments are exceeding broad" beneath which is a carved Tree of Life by Joan Dewe.

Each fixed pew bears the carved name, location, date and age at death of each of the fallen soldiers. The main door, carved by Joan Drewe, features the three magi with carved jambs topped by figures of wise men and kings.

The stained glass windows are bespoke, with manufacturers unknown. The south wall windows depict war and peace; the war window includes an illustration of the ruins of Ypres, while the peace window shows the village crossroads including St Stephen's itself. The north wall contains memorial windows to Captain Burmester, showing his local residence Lovelocks, and to his wife Alicia, installed in 1946 and 1948 respectively.

Memorial plaques accompany the stained glass memorials. Between the war and peace windows is a tiled memorial listing the names of eleven fallen soldiers: Clifford Coxe, Arthur Coxe, Cecil Coxe, Frank Davis, Tom Goodall, Thomas Hudson, Arthur Hudson, Stewart Langford, Edward Pike, Stanley Robinson and George Udny. The inscription reads: "These windows are dedicated to those who being dwellers in this hamlet or worshippers in this church gave their lives for their country in the cause of mercy, truth, righteousness and peace in the years 1914-1918. Their name liveth for evermore." Carved stone plaques honour Captain Burmester, recording that he gave this church to the parish and beautified it, and his wife Alicia, whose plaque reads: "In loving memory of Alicia wife of Arnold Charles Burmester. She loved to design for her husbands wood carving and to play the Organ in this Church for the Choir she trained. Born 1857 Died 1946." There is also a tiled memorial to Charles Van Milligen M.C and Bar and a brass plaque to Elizabeth Green.

Other notable fixtures include the font of Saxon origin, brought from the parish church at Avington where it may have originally served as a holy water stoup, set upon a shaft depicting carved interlacing animals. The timber pulpit, from the church at Stockcross, stands on a raised base in the form of an arcade with carved columns. The south transept contains an organ built in 1881 by Atterton of Leighton Buzzard.