St John the Baptist

We are a village church that connects people through time and place.

We have links to the House of Commons through James William Lowther, Speaker of the House 1905-21, county cricketer Henry Knatchbull (Rector 1867-76), and connections to painter Thomas Gainsborough through his friend Samuel Kilderbee (Rector 1784 to 1817). More humbly we have young mother-to-be Iris Mabel Driver on our Roll of Honour who was killed when a German bomb fell on the village in 1940, and a ledger stone in the chancel to Mary Braham, who died in childbirth in 1660.

Churches, like people, do not stand still. The building has undergone change and restoration, and the only trace of its earliest Norman history is within the masonry footings. The current building gives an air of tranquillity with a bright white interior covered in a cascade of coloured light from the stained glass including our ‘crown jewel’ east window of Christ and saints, including three Anglo-Saxon saints, St Hilda, St Oswald and St Edmund. The Hope and Faith window in the nave was designed by Henry Holiday, whose work is also found in the Isambard Kingdom Brunel memorial window within Westminster Abbey.

In more recent history, the tower spirelet was damaged in the great storm of 1987, and the bells, some of which have rung in the church since the early 1600s, were restored in 2010, we welcome visiting ringers!

The churchyard is a treasure in its own right, with a wealth of wildlife surrounding ancient headstones. A list of recently spotted butterflies and plants can be found inside the church, and over the summer of 2019 included some lesser spotted species such as the white-letter hairstreak butterfly, as well as over 50 different plant species.

A detailed guidebook can be found in the church. Further information on village history and heritage is also available in the church. Don’t forget to bring your binoculars to hunt out the high up decorative features of the church and to see what wildlife you could discover!