Church of St Sabinus (Wollacombe Church)

SS 44 SE 3/203

MORTEHOE Wollacombe BEECH ROAD Church of St Sabinus (Wollacombe Church)

II* Parish Church. 1910 (north aisle completed 1965) by Caröe. Squared sandstone rubble with stone dressings. Delabole slate roofs with gable ends. Nave and chancel both with narrow aisles, flat-roofed to north, and asymmetrical placed transeptal squat tower with saddleback roof, gableted to south side.

Single-storey with rooms in undercroft at west end. Buttresses with weatherings flank window openings, most of which have gentle ogee-arched lights and ferramenta. North and south walls have three four-light windows. Two single light windows at west end of south side, that to left is stair light to basement steps in angle of west end of south aisle and western extension of nave with separate hipped slate roof, that to right above projecting porch with gabled slate roof with single light window to front and blocked side door. Two-light bell-opening to sides and three-light bell-opening to south front of tower with doorway to east side. Chancel end of south side has two-light window, then two quatrefoil windows and single light window to right. Additional three-light window to north side at east end and clerestory gabled window of four lights with cusped heads and planted timber framing above.

Large parapeted north porch with two single-light windows to north side and pointed arched doorway to east with cavetto-moulded surround with pyramid stops. Framed and ledged inner door with ogee-style arch to doorway. Five-light east window with carved stone panel inset above. West window of three lights, stepped with relieving arch. Plaque on buttress below and to right of four-light basement window recording foundation stone laid in 1910 by Lady Chichester.

Impressive Interior: wide nave with narrow aisles and four-centred arched arcades with piers of square section with hollow chamfers and pyamid stops, four bays to each side, the west end bay is blind to north side and additional short bay at west end of south side. The chancel has three bay arcades with oak posts of square section stained green, supporting segmental arches.

Fine roof structure to chancel and nave, waggon roof to chancel with carved corbel bosses at east end. Elaborate chancel/nave truss and ten other arch-braced trusses to nave with moulded soffits, each intermediate truss with corbelled wall-posts.

Sedilia with quatrefoil windows to chancel of two seats and piscina to left with scalloped base and tower door at east end of aisle all square-headed with dropped keystones. Elaborate wooden chancel screen with grille, ogee-headed to centre with carved coving and rood. Octagonal front 1916 with fleuron ornamentation. Pulpit 1914. Stained glass by Nicholson Studios and by Kempe.

Listing NGR: SS4613443808