Church Of St Dunstan

The Church of St Dunstan is a parish church dating back to the 12th century, with subsequent alterations and additions in the 13th, 14th, and 15th centuries. It was widened in 1856-61 by R C Hussey, and restored in 1870 by Scott. The church is constructed of flint with stone dressings and a plain tile roof. It comprises a west tower, a south porch, a continuous nave and chancel, and a north chapel and north aisle.

The west tower is of the 15th century, with two stages set on a plinth. It features gargoyles along the upper string and battlements. Cusped two-light belfry openings illuminate the upper stage, while narrow single north and west lights, with moulded jambs to the top of the lower stage, provide additional light. A 19th-century west window and a moulded two-centred arched west doorway with a hoodmould are also present. A polygonal, battlemented stair turret projects to the south-east, also featuring a gargoyled string.

The nave is plinthless and contains a small, undressed 12th-century lancet window and two 19th-century windows designed to resemble 14th-century styles, with hood-moulds and carved label stops. The south porch, also 19th century, has a moulded two-centred arched doorway in a 15th-century style, with cusped bargeboards. An inner, moulded two-centred arched doorway with a hoodmould leads to the church, with a medieval boarded door. The chancel is also plinthless, with three south windows – two 19th-century and one lancet towards the east end, incorporating 19th-century dressings. Decorative chalk voussoirs are positioned towards the east end, suggesting the former presence of a blocked round-headed south entrance. The east window is a 15th-century design, featuring three cinquefoiled lights with upper tracery.

The north chapel, dating to the late 12th century, has a gable slightly lower than the chancel, but much lower than the north aisle. It features moulded stone plinths and 19th-century windows in a 14th-century style. The north aisle, built on a moulded plinth, is slightly narrower than the chapel. A 19th-century trefoil-headed doorway with roll mouldings sits in the angle between the north aisle and the north chapel, alongside other 19th-century windows.

The interior of the church was not inspected. J. Newman’s “Buildings of England” notes a late 12th-century two-bay north arcade to the chancel, with lightly chamfered pointed arches, round piers with square chamfered abaci, and capitals carved with leaves. The 13th-century north arcade to the nave is also described as featuring round piers and simply-moulded capitals carved with leaves. A 14th-century recess is located in the north chapel. The nave has a crown-post roof. The chancel and north chapel were decorated in 1870 with a carved screen, stalls, and “remarkable” patterned wall-paintings.