Listed Building record MDR4305 - St Saviour's Church, Off Milton Road, Foremark

St Saviour's Church, off Milton Road, Foremark, built c1662. 'Foremark and Ingleby are both mentioned as chapels of Repton in the confirmation charters of 1271 and 1279. In 1650, the report of the Parliamentary Commissioners indicated that the Foremark chapel was to made a parish church, and the Ingleby chapel was to be disused. In 1662, a new church was consecrated at Foremark by Bishop Hackett. In the preliminary recital, Henry Archbold, diocesan registrar, addressed the Bishop with the details of this new consecration. He announced that the inhabitants of Foremark and Ingleby had formerly each had a chapel of ease, owing to the distance from the mother church. He described how the present chapel of Ingleby was so ruinous that it was not fit for use, but the inhabitants were too poor to pay for repairs; and also that the Foremark chapel was so utterly ruined that they were left without a place to worship. In addition, neither chapel had the right of burial; and so it was proposed that a minister be supported at a new church in Foremark. Permission for the demolition of the Ingleby chapel was granted, on the condition that the wood and stone be re-used in the building of the bell-tower and churchyard wall of the new church at Foremark. This church is dedicated to St Saviour, and is a small plain building, consisting of nave, chancel, and a low west tower. It is built in a debased Perpendicular style. The font is thought to be of Early English date, and is therefore likely to have come from one of the earlier chapels at Ingleby or Foremark.' (1) 'Mr CS Greaves writes to Cox (1879) stating that 'when the present church (at Foremark) was in contemplation, the then Baronet told the inhabitants that if they would like to draw the stone for the church, he would build it wherever they liked; but if they would not, he would build it where he liked. They refused, and accordingly it was built where it is most convenient for the Hall, and most inconvenient for Ingleby'.' (2) 'Foremark Church, built 1660-1662, was restored in 1956.' (3) 'In normal use (1966).' (4) 'St Saviour's Church was built completely in 1662 by Sir Frances Burdett, and has kept most of its original furnishings in tact. The exterior is still entirely Gothic. The interior has a rich rood screen, which is still wholly Jacobean in character, except that the steep, big, central pediment is characteristic of the mid 17th century, and has a panel of 17th century stained glass.' (5) The bells of St Saviour's Church are of historical significance due to them being a full collection all made by the same founder. They were cast in 1668 by G Oldfield of Nottingham. (7) From the National Heritage List for England: 'SK 32 NW 3/43 PARISH OF FOREMARK OFF MILTON ROAD (south side) Church of St Saviour 19.01.67 GV I Parish church. 1662. Sandstone ashlar, roofs hidden behind battlemented parapets. West tower, nave and chancel. Moulded plinth. C19 brick vestry on the south side of the tower not of special interest. West tower has diagonal buttress with four set-offs. West face has a doorway with moulded four-centred arch and hoodmould. Double doors. Two-light window above with shallow pointed arch and cusped lights. Moulded hoodmould. Two-light bell-openings in each direction, plain four-centred arched lights within a broad four-centred arch. The nave and chancel have two-bay symmetrical elevations to north and south, each with a central gableted buttress and diagonal buttresses with two set-offs.Two four-centred arched windows of five cusped pointed lights. Hoodmoulds with square stops. The two elevations are similar, but the south elevation also has a four-centred arched priests doorway with plank door. The east elevation has a similar five-light window, and above it; a cartouche with coat of arms and two small figures, set in strapwork decoration. INTERIOR: round-arched tower arch with moulded imposts. Double-purlin roof with cambered tie beams on moulded corbels. C17 box pews and three-decker pulpit. Handsome C17 screen of two round-arched divisions either side of a tripartite entrance with a large steep pediment above, enclosing a panel of C17 stained glass. Circular font with deep cauldron-shaped bowl on a circular stem. C17 wooden cover. Wrought-iron communion rails of c1710 by Robert Bakewell. Three lozenge shaped hatchments and one square hatchment. Monuments: plain C17 tablets on either side of the east window. Also C19 painted biblical texts and the creed. Listing NGR: SK3297826470.' (8