St Peter's Church Headon

St Peter's Church in Headon, near Retford, is one of Nottinghamshire's most historically significant village churches. Standing on the highest point of the village, it has been a place of worship for over 850 years and is a Grade I listed building, reflecting its exceptional architectural and historic importance.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

There was a church here in 1171 but the present church building originated in the early 13th century, and much of what visitors see today dates from the 13th and 14th centuries. It is built from dressed stone in the Early English Gothic style, with later Perpendicular additions. The broad west tower is particularly distinctive: some historians believe it was originally intended to be taller, but work may have been halted by the Black Death in the mid-14th century. Alternatively, it may have been built in that way to support the spire which was there in the late 1770s. 

Notable features include: 

Early English arcades separating the nave from the aisles. 

Timber panelling made from the church's former box pews during the Victorian restoration of 1885. 

A 19th-century font. 

A fine Jacobean pulpit 

Memorials to local families, including the Wasteneys family, who were important medieval landowners. 

The demi-effigy, of a knight in chain mail armour which has been dated  to the late 13th/ early 14th  century, so is most probably from the tomb of Simon de Headon who died in 1301 and had been High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire 

Parish registers dating back to 1566. 

The church underwent a major restoration in 1885 under architect G. Somers Clarke, preserving much of its medieval fabric while repairing the building. Today it remains an active parish church, although Historic England has identified it as requiring significant roof repairs to address water ingress and damp. 

Although modest in size, St Peter's Church is a remarkable example of an English medieval parish church, combining centuries of history, architectural interest, and a prominent hilltop setting overlooking the Nottinghamshire countryside. Archaeological evidence shows that people have lived in the area for over 5,000 years while the building reflects the changing fortunes of the village over the centuries.