St George's Church, Poynton

St George's Church stands in the centre of the town of Poynton, Cheshire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Cheadle, the archdeaconry of Macclesfield, and the diocese of Chester.[1] The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.[2] It is the tallest building in Poynton.

St George's Church, Poynton
St George's Church, Poynton
St George's Church, Poynton
Location in Cheshire
OS grid referenceSJ 919 836
LocationPoynton, Cheshire
CountryEngland
DenominationAnglican
WebsiteSt George, Poynton
History
StatusParish church
DedicationSaint George
ConsecratedFebruary 1859
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Heritage designationGrade II
Designated17 November 1983
Architect(s)J. S. Crowther
J. Medland Taylor and
Henry Taylor (steeple)
Specifications
Spire height133 feet 10 inches (40.8 m)
MaterialsStone, slate roofs
Administration
ParishSt George, Poynton
DeaneryCheadle
ArchdeaconryMacclesfield
DioceseChester
ProvinceYork
Clergy
Vicar(s)Vacant
Curate(s)Revd Aled Seago
AssistantRevd Christine Buckley. Revd Andy Livingston
Laity
Churchwarden(s)Dave McClelland
Helen Bradley
Parish administratorAlan Goode

History

The original church in the town was a chapel of ease to St Peter, Prestbury, and was in existence by 1312.[3] The present church was built in 1858–59 on a site nearer to the town centre to a design by J. S. Crowther.[4] It was consecrated in February 1859 by the bishop of Chester. It became a separate parish in its own right in 1871.[3] The steeple, designed by J. Medland Taylor and Henry Taylor, was added in 1884–85.[4] In 1998 the interior of the church was re-ordered.[3]

Architecture

Exterior

St George's is constructed in yellow rubble stone from the Hig Lane quarry, and has dressings in stone from Lyme Handley.[4] It is roofed in slate. The plan consists of a nave with a six-bay clerestory, north and south five-bay aisles, a south porch, a chancel, and a steeple at the southeast corner. The tower has buttresses and an octagonal stair turret, and is surmounted by a broached spire with lucarnes. In the top stage are double louvred bell openings. Along the sides of the aisles are two-light windows, and along the clerestory are alternate two-light and circular windows. At the west end of the nave are two narrow lancet windows, above which is a sexfoil rose window. The east window has four lights containing Geometric tracery.[2]

Interior

Inside the church is a three-bay arcade carried on octagonal piers. In the chancel are a stone sedilia and piscina.[2] The stained glass in the east and southeast windows is by O'Connor (probably Arthur). At the east end of the north aisle is a window dating from about 1866 by John Adam Heaton. A window in the southwest of the church dating from about 1935 was designed by Edwin Wright, and commemorates the Mothers' Union.[4] The two-manual organ was built in 1972 by Smethurst of Manchester,[5] replacing a three-manual 19th-century organ by Nicholson and Lord that had been rebuilt by Austin Jones of Pendleton in 1925.[6] There is a ring of six bells, all cast in 1887 by John Taylor & Co of Loughborough. There is a further, unused, bell dating from 1835 by Thomas Mears II at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry.[7][8][9]

External features

The churchyard contains the war graves of ten British service personnel, three of World War I and seven of World War II.[10]

See also

References

  1. St George, Poynton, Church of England, retrieved 9 March 2012
  2. Historic England, "Church of St George, Poynton-with-Worth (1232286)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 9 March 2012
  3. A Short Guide and History of the Church, Poynton Parish Church, retrieved 10 November 2013
  4. Hartwell, Clare; Hyde, Matthew; Hubbard, Edward; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2011) [1971], Cheshire, The Buildings of England, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, p. 545, ISBN 978-0-300-17043-6
  5. Cheshire, Poynton, St. George, Chester Road (N02008), British Institute of Organ Studies, retrieved 10 March 2012
  6. Cheshire, Poynton, St. George, Chester Road (H00037), British Institute of Organ Studies, retrieved 10 March 2012
  7. Poynton, S George, Dove's Guide for Church Bell Ringers, retrieved 10 March 2012
  8. Poynton Bells:History of the Bells, Poynton Bellringers, retrieved 10 March 2012
  9. Poynton Bells:Bell Details, Poynton Bellringers, retrieved 10 March 2012
  10. POYNTON (ST. GEORGE) CHURCHYARD, Commonwealth War Graves Commission, retrieved 3 February 2013
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