Melton Mowbray Team Parish

Churches

St Mary’s Church Melton Mowbray

Leicestershire's most sophisticated church, even before we go inside.

St Mary’s Parish Church, in the centre of the market town of Melton Mowbray, is the largest parish church in the Leicester Diocese. It is certainly the finest. St Mary’s is a grand cruciform church with transepts and a crossing tower. The tower of scrubbed limestone has dominated the town for centuries.

St. Mary's Church dates mainly from the 13th-15th centuries. The stonework in the lowest section of the tower, which has Norman windows, dates from 1170, although there were certainly one or more Anglo-Saxon churches on this site before the Norman one. It is built on a plan more usual for cathedrals and the 100-foot tower dominates the town, and is a rare example of a parish church with aisled transepts (one of only five in the country) a feature usually found only in a cathedral.

The belfry contains ten bells. The earliest bell (No.6) is by John of York dating from the fourteenth century. Most of the rest have been recast. Until 1802 there were only six bells: then two more were added and in 1894 a further two made the total ten. In addition there is a small sanctus bell which dates from the seventeenth century.

The carillon, on which chimes are played two times a day (at 12 noon and 3pm), was restored in 1938.

The church has a large three manual pipe organ by Haydn Morton of 1929 which was rebuilt by J. W. Walker & Sons Ltd in 1955. Malcolm Sergeant is amongst the former organists and choirmasters, being in post from 1914 to 1924.

St. Mary’s offers a wide variety of worship on a Sunday morning, including traditional Prayer Book Holy Communion at 8.00 a.m., Common Worship Communions at 10.30 and an alternative-style Ten2Ten at... 10 to 10! On the second and fourth Sundays at 6.30 p.m. there are sung services of Choral Evensong and Communion.

 

St Mary the Virgin, Thorpe Arnold

The village of Thorpe Arnold is situated on the A607 Grantham road, a mile to the north east of Melton Mowbray. The village was until recent years, a traditional farming community.

Apart from the Church building, the only other amenity in the village is the Village Hall, which is currently being rebuilt.

The present church building dates back to 1150AD, with extensions and numerous periods of rebuilding and repairs, the last major scheme being in the 1860’s, where the whole building, from the clerestory upwards, was taken down and rebuilt. It was during the period that the medieval glass was removed. The only stained glass windows that we now have are late Victorian. The font dates back to 850AD.

Over the past 20 years, the nave and chancel roofs have been replaced, a new lighting scheme installed, external walls re-pointed, tracery windows repaired and a new set of 5 bells hung in the tower. In 2007, the Chancel was reordered, with the choir stalls being removed, new carpet being laid and new chairs purchased.

The Church is very much a church for the community and offers a variety of styles of worship. Most Sunday morning services are Communion at 9.45 a.m., and the Family service on the first Sunday and Family Communion on the third do offer content suitable for all ages, including children. The first Sunday at 6.00 p.m. has a Quiet Communion Service... very simple, with no fuss! ... and the third Sunday evening there is a sung Evensong.

 

St. James' Church, Burton Lazars

St. James Church has served the village of Burton Lazars since the eleventh century. The village is located in a prominent position alongside the busy A606 road to Oakham some one and a half miles from Melton Mowbray. The earliest part of the church is contemporary with the oldest remains of St Mary’s Church in Melton Mowbray. The main body of the church is in the later Norman style and is probably an enlargement of an earlier and smaller church. Here are the remains of an altar and piscine in each aisle of the nave and an islet can be seen on either side of the chancel arch, which may have originally have supported a rood screen. The chancel was rebuilt in the 20th century and the altar is one which served St Mary’s in Melton Mowbray for many years. The font is attributed to the latter part of the 14th century and is surprisingly in a perfect state of preservation.

Two bells are hung from the curious but handsome little bell turret at the west end of the church.

The twenty foot high Georgian memorial in the churchyard was erected to the memory and vanity of a local man, William Squires, and is adorned with carved figures representing Life, Death, Time, Faith, Hope and Charity, as well as a stone globe of the world.

This village Church has a regular Sunday morning service slot at 11.15. Communion Services on the first & second Sunday mainly follow the traditional Prayer Book, as does Matins on the fourth. “Meeting Point” on the third Sunday is a different style, when you get the chance to choose your favourite hymns!

 

Sysonby Church

This tiny church is tucked away at the bottom of Sysonby Grange Lane on the edge of Melton Mowbray, off the A6006 Asfordby Road.

The hamlet of Sysonby was mentioned in the Domesday Book under differing names, but it took its present name in 1552. Since that time the hamlet and its residents have had a chequered history. All that remains of the hamlet is the ancient little church building, which is believed to have been built around 1344. It is of simple construction, with a small nave and a tower with one bell. It was restored in 1892 and since then many local people have contributed towards the upkeep of the church and churchyard. In 1925, in memory of the Dalgliesh family (a well known and respected local family), a small side chapel was added. This now serves as a vestry and has greatly improved the interior of this lovely little church.

Services are only held occasionally... around three or four a year. A variety of worship is on offer.

 

 

Welby Church

Welby Church is situated about two miles north of the centre of Melton Mowbray, off the A606 Nottingham Road. The church can be found off St Bartholomew’s Way.

The church probably dates from the time of the first Roger de Mowbray in the latter part of the 12th century. It consists of a nave, chancel and porch with a small tower, most of which is built of nearby sandstone.

The east window is large for the size of the building. The ancient glass of the windows, of which considerable remains still existed in the 18th century, was later removed to form part of the assembly of ancient glass in St Mary’s Church Melton Mowbray.

There is in this church an interesting piece of old carved woodwork in the form of a pulpit and reading desk and a screen surrounding, which is most probably by its appearance of Elizabethan or early Jacobean times.

The Church, on the outskirts of Melton Mowbray is very much the Church for those who love the old Prayer Book. Services are at 3.00 p.m. with Evensong on the first Sunday and Communion on the third.

 

St Mary's Church, Freeby

St Mary's Church Freeby has been part of the Team Ministry of Melton Mowbray for as long as records show. It is situated in a small village three miles out of Melton on the B676 Saxelbye Road. The church, a grade 1 listed building. Unfortunately, due to structural problems, the church is currently closed for all services and visitors.

The church has a nave, chancel, porch and tower, and much of it is in the Early English style. It has a strong resemblance to St James’ Church in Burton Lazars, especially with its nave aisles and the tower at the west end which was built later in the 16th century.

Freeby's claim to fame is that Isaac Watts, the writer of many well know hymns such as “O God our help in ages past” and “Jesus shall reign where ere the sun” lived in the village as chaplain to the Lord of the Manor and tutored his children.

Traditional Prayer Book services are held on the second and fourth Sundays in the United Reform Church chapel in the village, whilst decisions are taken over the future of the Church building.