St Mary's Church, Shipton Solars

The first record of a church on the site is that of a chapel in 1236. By the 17th century the fabric of the building had decayed, and the church was closed. The church continued in occasional use during the 20th century, but was declared redundant in 2005, and vested in the Churches Conservation Trust on 15 July of that year. The trust commissioned an architect to organise a programme of repairs, in particular to make the building wind and weatherproof. As of 2010, the church is unlocked during the day, and it is cleaned and cared for by local residents.

The interior of the church is plastered. Both the nave and the chancel have wagon roofs. To the left of the chancel arch is a small aumbry, and there is another aumbry in the north wall of the chancel. In the south wall of the chancel is a piscina The chancel walls are panelled, the panelling behind the altar having linenfold decoration. There are remnants of medieval paintings of texts and inscriptions in the nave, and painted crosses in the nave and chancel. Over the chancel arch is painted the date 1212. The floor is flagged. The choirstalls and chairs date from the 20th century. The carved oak pulpit and tester are from the 17th century. On the wall in front of the pulpit is an…