West Runton is an attractive small village just inland from the North Sea between Sheringham and West Runton. The church is set on a slight rise at the edge of the village and is a typical long low C13th or C14th building built of stone and flint. The square and rather squat tower was the last part of the church to be built The alternating large and small windows of the south aisle were added in the C15th. Like many churches, it under went heavy restoration in the C19th. The calvary in the churchyard is a memorial to Felix Hackett Matthews who was vicar here for 45 years and died in 1964. The figure of Christ is a fibreglass replacement for the original which was vandalised soon after the Calvary was erected.
The village war memorial is set in an angle of the churchyard wall next to the road. The moving inscription along the top reads “THEY WERE A WALL UNTO US BOTH BY NIGHT AND DAY”.
Inside it is a simple but attractive church inside and felt light and airy even on a dull February morning. A tall arcade of pointed arches reach nearly to the top of the nave walls. There are no clerestory windows here.
Furnishings date from the C19th restorations, although the stone font at the back of the nave is C14th, but the cover is modern. The C14th sedilia and piscina can still be seen on the south wall of the chancel. It has some good modern stained glass. The east window is C19th and shows the Ascension of Christ. At the end of the south aisle is St Francis of Assisi. At the end of the north aisle is the ‘Worshippers through the ages window’ dating from 1959 with medieval knights and ladies at the bottom and a 1950s family at the top.
The south aisle has the Resurrection window dating from the start of the C20th.
The church is open daily from dawn to dusk. It is an Anglo Catholic church and Mass is celebrated every day, except Tuesdays. There is no parking by the church although it is possible to park in the village. There are a few steps up through the lych gate. The post code is NR27 9QT and the grid reference is TG 179428.
There are more pictures “here.”:http://wasleys.org.uk/eleanor/churches/england/norfolk/west_runton/index.html
