Description

SK 45 SW RIDDINGS CHURCH STREET
(north side)

4/43 Church of St James

GV II

Church. 1832 by Francis Bedford, for Oakes family of Riddings House. Ashlar, laid
in alternating thick and thin courses with ashlar dressings and slate roofs with
stone copings to gables, plus ridge crosses. Three and half bay nave with enclosed
western tower and single bay chancel with small south porch, now chapel, and north
vestry. Plinth. West elevation has central three stage tower with stepped full
height angle buttresses on western corners with gableted tops and deep chamfered
doorcase with returned hood and double plank doors. To either side the nave has
paired blind lancets under continuous hoodmoulds and stepped angle buttresses.
Above the doorcase is a lancet with returned hoodmould and above again a blind stage
with moulded string-courses to base and top. Bell stage has tall paired louvred
lancets with continuous hoodmoulds to each side and above a moulded cornice,
embattled parapets and a recessed octagonal stone spire with friezes of carved
stone, and ball finial. North and south elevations of nave have tall paired lancets
with return hoodmoulds to each bay with stepped buttresses between, rising above
parapets with capped tops; moulded eaves band and blocking course with moulded
copings. Half bay to west has 2-light plate tracery window with lancet over, both
with returned hoodmoulds, on south side and is blind to north side. Narrower
chancel to east has late C19 porch in re-entrant angle to south side with double
chamfered pointed east door below hoodmould with foliage stops, and paired lancets
to side. The porch partly covers a blind eastern lancet to nave with returned hood-
mould. South wall of chancel with three lancets with hoodmoulds and continuous
sill band. North chancel wall has canted vestry to west with triple lancet window
and Caernarvon arched doorcase covering eastern nave lancet, and polygonal bay to
east with lancets to angle wall and with lapped stone roof. East elevation of
chancel has triple stepped lancets with hoodmoulds and continuous sill band, central
lancet much larger than flanking ones. Interior has canted western gallery, with
trefoil headed blind panelling, on fluted iron columns, housing large organ. Tall
double chamfered chancel arch with soffit on moulded corbels, below returned hood-
mould flanked by tall pointed blind recesses, that to south full height with
chamfered pointed doorcase to base, that to north shorter and with adjoining pair
of pointed doorcases with central column, below returned hoodmoulds. Caernarvon
arched door from chancel to north vestry and pointed arched doorcase from nave to
tower and from tower to gallery stairs. Nave windows all with window seats to base.
Queen strut roof to nave and arched braced trusses to chancel. Plain choir stalls,
nave pews and altar, but elaborate marble reredos across full width of chancel with
three crocketed gablets to centre, iron and brass altar rails and stone and iron
rood screen across chancel arch with cusped arcade to base on marble columns and
ironwork ogee headed arcade above. Octagonal pulpit and moulded stone stem and
timber top with cusped dagger motifs to sides. Font also octagonal, of polished
Hopton Wood marble with raised shields to each side of bowl and with carved timber
cover. Two early C19 slate and white marble wall memorials to nave and numerous
late C19 and early C20 brass memorials. Most windows with stained glass, that to
east early C19, the rest mostly late C19.

Listing NGR: SK4289852764

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Church of St James at Wikipedia
• Wikidata Q26402780

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Suffolk: West: The Buildings of England (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Essex: Buildings of England Series (Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Development and Design of Heritage Sensitive Sites: Strategies for Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas
• 
  Staffordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Historic Environment Law: Planning, Listed Buildings, Monuments, Conservation Areas and Objects, Supplement 2014
• 
  Maintaining and Repairing Old Houses: A Guide to Conservation, Sustainability and Economy