Church of St Stephen

Church of St Stephen

Church designed by E P Loftus Brock in the Decorated style, built in 1879-80 at the expense of Oswald Smith of Hammerwood Park (Grade I), for the Hammerwood Estate.

The church is constructed of rock-faced local sandstone with diagonal bands of smooth stone and chequer-work to the west front. The walls are detailed with sawtooth cill bands incorporating flint in the gaps of the teeth. The roof is tiled mainly in red tiles with diaper patterns in black tiles and terra cotta ridge tiles.

The plan comprises a three-and-a-half bay nave and south aisle, a two-bay chancel, a south-east tower with spire, and a north-east vestry.

The west end of the nave features a gabled roof with a cross-shaped saddle stone, a large five-light flowing traceried window and end angled buttresses. The west end of the south aisle has a smaller gable end with an oval light above a three-light flowing traceried window and an angled buttress at the end.

The north side of the nave has three flowing traceried windows divided by buttresses and a projecting gabled porch with a cross-shaped saddle stone and an arched doorcase with a plank door with large iron hinges.

The south aisle has a similar porch to the north side of the nave but features traceried lancet windows divided by buttresses. At the east end is a south-east tower of three stages with clasped buttresses and a crenellated parapet with ornamental waterspouts. The top stage has arched windows with drip moulds, the middle stage has lancets and the lowest stage has arched windows with flowing tracery. The tower is surmounted by an octagonal stone spire with lucarnes.

The chancel has a large five-light east window with flowing tracery, two two-light lancet windows on the south side, and a two-light lancet window on the north side. A gabled vestry with a chimney and two-light lancet window adjoins to the north.

Internally, the nave has a south arcade with stiff-leaf capitals and an arch-braced roof with kingposts and two tiers of purlins. The 1887 west window by Clayton and Bell depicts St James, St Peter, St Stephen, St Paul and St Barnabas. The west end walls retain cast iron wall gasoliers which were lit by a private gasworks in Hammerwood Park. The north wall contains a memorial window to Oswald Augustus Smith, also by Clayton and Bell, depicting Christ and the two Maries, together with wall tablets including one to the Rev. George Ferris Whidborne (died 1910), a Victorian palaeontologist, and another to his son of the same name who fell at Bethune. A further monument to Anthony Clouston Partridge (died 1943) is a relief of Elisha and the Shunammite Woman and Child by Eric Kennington.

The south aisle roof has angled queen struts. The west stained glass window by Clayton and Bell depicts the Prodigal Son flanked by a Sower and a Reaper. The south wall lancet windows have stained glass geometrical patterns. A curved stone octagonal font at the west end features tracery panels from the base and around the bowl.

Both nave and south aisle retain the original pews with lightweight ends. The nave has a central band of red and black floor tiles.

Two steps lead up to the chancel which has an elaborate carved wooden pulpit on the north side and an eagle lectern. A stained glass window in the north wall of the chancel by Clayton and Bell commemorates Henrietta Mildred Smith and depicts Mary washing Jesus' feet. The east window depicts the Four Evangelists with their symbols below. Carved wooden altar rails and a carved wooden reredos inscribed with the text of the Lord's Prayer, the Credo and the Ten Commandments are present. The choir stalls have poppyhead finals. The tower houses an organ by T C Lewis and a set of six bells.