Church Of Holy Cross

The Church of Holy Cross is a parish church dating from the 14th and 15th centuries, with a late 19th-century restoration. It is constructed of coursed squared limestone with limestone and sandstone dressings, and has slate roofs. The church comprises a chancel, nave, north and south aisles, a south aisle chapel, a south porch, and a west tower.

The chancel has three bays, with a 3-light east window featuring 19th-century Decorated tracery. Tall 2-light windows with segmental heads and intersecting tracery are located to the north and south. A 2-light Perpendicular low-side window with a straight head is at the south-west end. The north aisle extends over the first bay of the chancel and has a 3-light Decorated east window. The north aisle has four bays with 2-light Decorated windows, a small 2-light west window, a priests’ door at the north-east end, and a pointed arch north door between the first and second windows to the west. The south aisle has 3-light Decorated windows to the east end and a projecting south-east chapel. Windows on either side of the porch and at the west end mirror those of the north aisle. The south porch has a richly moulded entrance arch with ball flowers to the middle moulding, a crocketed ogee hood, and pinnacles, with a shallow niche and nodding ogee hood above. The south door within has a double-chamfered arch with a hood mould.

The nave has a clerestory with three 3-light straight-headed Perpendicular windows on the north and south sides. An additional 2-light window with a segmental head is at the east end of the south aisle; sections of earlier blocked circular windows are visible inside. The west tower has three stages with angle buttresses. It features a west door similar to the south porch entrance and a 2-light Decorated window above, both with ogee hood moulds. Niches with nodding ogee hoods and pinnacles are located above the window and at either side. The belfry stage has 2-light windows with basket arch heads and hood moulds. The tower is topped by battlements and a recessed spire with two tiers of lucarnes in alternating directions; corner turrets were recently removed. The interior chancel includes a 3-seat sedilia with 4-centred cusped arch heads and a piscina. Stained glass in the east and south-west windows dates from 1897 and 1902 and is by Kempe. The chancel arch is double-chamfered, with responds supported by corbel heads. The nave has arcades of four bays with double-chamfered arches and hood moulds, octagonal capitals, piers, and pier-bases. The south-east aisle chapel has a piscina with a cusped ogee head and hood mould with label stops, and an aumbry. The tower arch is triple-chamfered with a hood mould and label stops. The church contains 19th-century roofs, pews, a 17th-century pulpit on baluster legs, and 17th and 18th century wall monuments. Gargoyles were removed from the tower in the south porch.