Church Of St Thomas A Beckett

The Church of St Thomas a Beckett is a Grade II* listed building, dating from the late 12th century, late 13th century, and early 15th century, with restorations carried out in 1849 and by G.E. Street in 1859. It is constructed of limestone rubble and ashlar, topped with stone-slate roofs. The church comprises a nave, chancel, south porch, and vestry. The 13th-century chancel features three lancet windows on each side, one of which has been later extended downwards, along with a three-light east window that displays flowing tracery. The south wall of the nave, built in the 15th century, has two windows with three pointed lights under square heads. A small early 19th-century porch has an arched entrance that contains the original studded door from the 17th-century square-headed south doorway. The rebuilt north side of the nave includes two 19th-century lancets. The west wall is supported by a central buttress between 13th-century lancets and features a double bellcote.

Inside, there is a transitional chancel arch with volute capitals and corner spurs at the bases. The chancel has a lowered side window with a stone bookrest, a 13th-century trefoil-headed piscina, and 19th-century arch-braced roofs. The chancel walls retain sections of 13th-century painted masonry and stencil decoration above an 18th-century mosaic dado, along with a mosaic reredos from around 1860 by Salviati. Notable fittings include a Jacobean pulpit with arched panels and communion rails featuring bulbous balusters and a carved pulvinated frieze, likely a reused desk front from late 17th-century stalls of very high quality. The church has significant connections with Christ Church, Oxford, which may indicate its origins. Additionally, there is 19th-century stained glass in the east window and three lancets in the nave. Monuments within the church include an 18th-century marble wall monument and a 17th-century black marble ledger.