Upper Church of St Peter

Upper Church of St Peter, Pembury

This parish church, formerly a Chapel of Ease, was built in 1846–7 on ground provided by the Marquess Camden. It was designed by Stephens of Tunbridge Wells (identified as E.W. Stephens by Newman and N.E. Stephens by the Church Guide). The steeple was strengthened in 1886 but removed in 1984. The north aisle was extended in 1894. The building is constructed of coursed local sandstone ashlar with a slate roof.

The church comprises a nave and chancel with north and south aisles, the north aisle extended to full length. A tower stands at the west end of the south aisle, with a north porch and a vestry with cellar underneath on the south side of the chancel. The design is essentially a single-phase building executed in Perpendicular Gothic style.

The tower rises in three stages with set-back buttresses and an embattled parapet over a moulded cornice with carved gargoyle water spouts. The belfry contains pairs of tall lancets with tracery, whilst small trefoil-headed lancets light the ringing floor. Two-light windows with Perpendicular tracery and hoodmoulds appear in the lower stage and around the rest of the church. The tower's west doorway is a two-centred arch with moulded surround and hoodmould rising from a continuous dripcourse that runs round the entire church. The south aisle extends three bays separated by buttresses, each containing three-light windows. A moulded cornice with parapet runs above, and the clerestorey of the nave features three two-light windows. The east end of the nave has kneelers carved with human heads, possibly representing Victoria and Albert. The east window is of four lights. The north aisle comprises six bays in the same Perpendicular style. A gabled porch stands right of centre, flanked by low diagonal buttresses, with a two-centred outer arch with moulded surround containing a good plank door on ornate strap hinges. A two-light window occupies the west end of the north aisle, whilst a five-light window lights the west end of the nave.

Internally, the nave features a four-bay open hammer beam roof in Perpendicular style. The chancel has a plainer two-bay roof of arch-braced trusses. The chancel arch, tower arch and arcades are all two-centred arches on diagonally set piers or imposts with engaged shafts on the corners, moulded caps and bases. A small shoulder-headed arch doorway leads to the vestry. The walls are plastered, and the floor comprises black and red tiles with sanctuary encaustic tiles.

The stone reredos forms a Perpendicular Gothic blind arcade. An oak altar rail has relatively plain standards and brackets pierced by trefoils. A stone pulpit matches the Gothic style. Brass rails on iron standards define the chancel, likely added during the 1894 modernisation. A brass pulpit sits on a wooden base. The Perpendicular-style stone font has an octagonal bowl with sides carved with quatrefoil panels. Pine stalls and benches furnish the interior.

The east window contains nineteenth-century stained glass. A stained glass window in the south aisle is dated 1902. A small window at the west end of the north aisle contains unusual stained glass signed by Leonard Walker and dated 1938. Memorials are few and of local interest only.