About Us

St Peters church was built in 1869, a cruciform church in the early English style of architecture. It was built to seat 300 people which is now a little large for the community, but when built there were more farm hands and domestic staff working  in the area. It is also possible they thought the village would grow after the arrival of the railways at Windermere and Haverthwaite.

The church appears to be built in the middle of fields but is accessed by a small lane from the village. The man responsible for the building of the church was a judge from London; R.S. Sawler QC. He set up the fund raising committee, chose the architect, and designed the sanctuary furniture. The house he lived in overlooked the valley, and so the architect Robert Brass designed the church to be viewed from that point. The main road B5285 which starts at the Windermere Ferry and climbs up the hill known as Claife Heights, offers travelers this view, considered by many to be one of the finest views in the Lake district.

Prior to the church being built, the school room (18th c) was licensed to be used for Divine Worship once a month. Until 1875 the village was in the parish of St Michael and all Angels,, Hawkshead.