Church of St John the Baptist is a Grade II* listed building in the Peak District National Park local planning authority area, England. First listed on 14 April 1967. A C18 Church.

Church of St John the Baptist

WRENN ID
north-pedestal-rook
Grade
II*
Local Planning Authority
Peak District National Park
Constituency
Macclesfield MP: Tim Roca (Lab)
Country
England
Date first listed
14 April 1967
Type
Church
Address
Church of St John the Baptist, Rainow, Cheshire East
OS grid reference
SJ 983 765
Coordinates
53.28628, -2.02567
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The Church of St John the Baptist is a Grade II* listed building located in Rainow, built in 1733 through local subscription, with a tower added in 1755. It features a Kerridge stone-slate roof, a stone ridge, and one stone chimney. The church consists of a two-storey nave, a one-storey chancel, and a vestry, along with a low three-stage saddleback tower. The nave has three fixed 20-pane windows on the lower level and two above. The east window of the chancel is a three-light casement with a lancet above it. The west door is a studded five-board design with a rubble segmental head. Above a projecting rubble band, there are two stones, the upper one reading "3 :John : Bap:ts. Free Chapel was, June 24th 1733, Erected." A partly erased tablet below states "....At John Slacks expence in 39 made sacred for worship of Almighty God." The second stage of the tower has a door to the gallery on the south side, accessed by external stone steps, while the third stage features rectangular bell openings with stone flag louvring.

Inside, the west porch includes stone flag seats. The nave contains a west gallery, a complete set of simple oak box pews, a pulpit, and a carved reader's desk. The chancel opening has a wooden lintel from which hangs a screen with turned balusters, and similar balusters are found in the altar rail and wainscotting behind the altar. This picturesque church, also known as Jenkin Chapel, is set in a moorland location and showcases a vernacular style with its interior and exterior largely intact.

Local climate

Church of St John the Baptist sits in a wetter-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 1,050 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 84% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 73% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 48 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 90% of listed buildings. Of these, 29 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

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