St John the Baptist

St Mary & All Saints

‘The Ringstone in Aveland Group of Churches is committed to safeguarding the welfare of all young people and vulnerable adults’.

The Parish Church of St. Mary and All Saints stands at the end of its own lane, some quarter of a mile to the West of the village, which once surrounded it.

The Heathcote family acquired the estate, which included Kirkby Underwood, in 1712 and to improve their shooting they moved the village a quarter of a mile eastwards under the 1803 Enclosures Act.

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In the Domesday Book of 1086, the village name was CHERCHEBI. It is believed that the name Kirkby was developed from the old Norse name KIRKUIBYR, which means a village with a church.

The old name for the church was All Hallows. No one is quite sure when it was changed to St. Mary and All Saints. Because of its size (one acre) and shape, it is thought to have been a Pagan site before the arrival of Christianity.

The William Hill organ was purchased from Rippingale church and installed in 1908. St Mary’s is fortunate to have 4 working bells, which are rung before services.</span>

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The churchyard is a mass of colour each spring from primroses, cowslips, oxlips and the false oxlip.

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Over the last few years there has been a steady increase in Sunday attendance. The congregation is of a mixed age Group, social and economic background, supported by members of other parishes within the Group and are used to flexible forms of worship.

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The PCC and Village Hall Committee work together on all major fund-raising activities such as the Summer Fayre, Open Gardens, Annual Produce show. Most events are held in the Village Hall but the church building is occasionally used for additional fund-raising events.

St Andrew

‘The Ringstone in Aveland Group of Churches is committed to safeguarding the welfare of all young people and vulnerable adults’.

The church is a beautiful Grade 1 listed building, dating from the C12, and are the only church in the Group with a spire. There are chairs rather than pews in the nave, which means the church is well suited for concerts and village events.

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Over the past nine years there has been a steady growth in attendance at services, some of which are led by the lay ministry team. We try to witness our faith in the village but also in the wider community.

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The church has a long-standing connection in Malawi with the Anglican church of St Jacob in the central region. Fundraising has meant that a new church and three houses have been built. Ongoing fundraising has led us to expanding our support to MACS-Malawi association for Christian support which helps other communities to maintain churches and clergy housing, builds classroom blocks for schools and gives medical equipment for clinics and hospitals.

All Saints

‘The Ringstone in Aveland Group of Churches is committed to safeguarding the welfare of all young people and vulnerable adults’.

The Church of All Saints is a Grade 1 listed building believed to date from the 12th century. The church has carillon type bells which are rung by our stalwart bell ringers before services and comprise a peel of 8 Hannington chimes donated in 1891. The organ is a restored Henry Bevington & Sons instrument built in the 1880’s and restored and installed into our church in 2017, purchased with the help of fund raising and grants. It has a pleasing appearance and an attractive tone.

The church provides a focal point for the village with a small regular congregation at its regular twice-monthly Sunday services, and with more people attending at Easter, Harvest Festival and Remembrance Sunday. The Carols By Candlelight service on Christmas Eve is always very popular and very well supported.

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The village hall provides an ideal venue for social activities. Fundraising functions for both the village hall and the church, through suppers, film nights and teas, are well attended.

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As well as the regular worshippers, others in the village generously offer help and contributions for social events and services. An example of the village pulling together is the annual litter pick – where tabards are donned and forks primed – to pick up detritus from the roadside all the way from the A15 to the other side of the village. It is good for the soul and everyone feels better!

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A versatile choir – The Wednesday Singers – hold their practices frequently; they raise funds for the church and other good causes and are often asked to sing at weddings. It’s not a church choir but it is run by the church organist.

St Andrew

‘The Ringstone in Aveland Group of Churches is committed to safeguarding the welfare of all young people and vulnerable adults’.

The Parish Church of St. Andrew is situated in the High Street, opposite the Village Green. It is a Grade 1 listed building dating from the late C13. At the turn of the millennium the South Aisle floor was dug up and replaced with redundant headstones, thus providing a suitable area for refreshments after services, social events, regular monthly coffee mornings and concerts, etc.

Currently church services are a mixture of Common Worship Eucharists, Family Service, Morning Prayer and BCP Evensong. The longstanding Plough Sunday Service has now been adopted by the Ringstone in Aveland Group as a Group event and is popular and well supported; latterly all members of the wider agricultural community are invited with some success.

Church Involvement within the parish is very active with Churchwardens actively involved in village committees. This means that Village events such as the Annual Feast, take place within the church, and there are regular attendees from other village clubs at our Coffee Mornings. It is appreciated that local people to help do jobs from tidying up the Churchyard to the erection of a rope hand rail to the belfry.

There is an enthusiastic team of bell ringers, who ring on a regular basis and before services.