Church of St James the Less is a Grade II listed building in the Somerset local planning authority area, England. First listed on 23 June 1988. Church.

Church of St James the Less

WRENN ID
western-nave-rye
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Somerset
Constituency
Glastonbury and Somerton MP: Sarah Dyke (LD)
Country
England
Date first listed
23 June 1988
Type
Church
Address
Church of St James the Less, Hambridge, Hambridge and Westport
OS grid reference
ST 392 209
Coordinates
50.98485, -2.8667
Source
Historic England listing

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

Description

The Church of St James the Less is an Anglican church located in Hambridge, with its foundation stone laid on June 20, 1842, and designed by architect Benjamin Ferrey. The building is constructed from coursed and squared hammer-dressed lias with Ham stone dressings, topped with a slate roof featuring coped verges and a cruciform finial. It exhibits a Decorated style and consists of a nave, chancel, a north organ chamber, a south vestry, and a slender west tower.

The nave is buttressed and has five bays, with 2-light windows that feature cusped tracery in two styles, and labels adorned with well-modelled heads as stops. There is a small gabled south porch with coping and a finial, which includes simple chamfered inner and outer doorways of two orders, and a ribbed inner door. The embattled tower has two stages, diagonal buttresses on the west side, pinnacles, gargoyles, and 2-light bell-chamber windows, along with a 2-light west window that matches the style of the nave. The west doorway is narrow.

The lean-to vestry and organ chamber reflect a similar style to the nave. The chancel is short and has a single bay, with lancet windows on the north and south sides, and a three-light east window featuring good reticulated tracery. The east window, dating from the mid-19th century, has unusual coloring and style. Inside, the church retains many good fixtures and furniture typical of a modest church, and it remains virtually unaltered since the end of the 19th century, showcasing the interior design of a Victorian country church.

Local climate

Church of St James the Less receives an average of 810 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 52% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 58% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 33 freeze-thaw cycles a year, fewer than 53% of listed buildings. Of these, 13 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.

More on this building

Sign in or create a free account to unlock:

  • No EPC on record for this property
  • No sale records on file
  • No related consent applications matched
  • Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
  • Flood risk assessment
  • Radon risk assessment
  • Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
Create free account

Matched applications, energy data and sale records are assembled automatically and may contain errors. Flag incorrect data.

Similar buildings

The closest matches to this building from all 493,000 UK listed buildings, by architecture, period and materials.

Nearby listed buildings

  1. Hambridge War Memorial Grade II 152 m
  2. Hundry Lodge Grade II 258 m
  3. Manor Farmhouse Grade II 401 m
  4. Hambridge Farmhouse Grade II 501 m
  5. Gatepiers on Roadside at Main Entrance to Earnshill House Grade II 545 m
  6. Bridge Over Former Westport Canal at Ngr St 38090 2030 Grade II 710 m
  7. The Lamb and Lion Inn Grade II 768 m
  8. By the Way Grade II 806 m
  9. Canal Bridge at Ngr St 3878 2015 Grade II 945 m
  10. Earnshill House Grade I 1.0 km