About Us

Whatlington church is  warm friendly and welcoming with a flexible and inclusive Christian congregation. We have a service every week, mostly based on the Common Worship liturgy in the traditional style.  We work to promote the Christian Faith in the village and the wider community. Our churchmanship is traditional, but we are always open to new ideas and welcome the ministry of women Priests!

We share our non-stipendiary Rector with our sister church at Sedlescombe and benefit from the services of retired clergy to enable us to cover all services. Visitors and newcomers are always very welcome and we hold various special services during the year which do attract people form the wider village community.

We offer a variety of services, our 09.15 Holy Communion with Hymns is on the first and third Sunday, on the second Sunday of each month we have a Family Service at 10.30am, followed with refreshments, then on the 4th Sunday of each month  we have an evening service at 4pm October to March and 6pm April to September, the format varies between Evensong, Songs of Praise and special services such as our Patronal and the Harvest Festival. Where there is a fifth Sunday in the month there will be a United Parish Service at 10.30 at either Whatlington or Sedlescombe. We have organ music and hymns at all services. 

Our 13th century church suffered a serious fire on 15th July 2010, this swept away most of the heavy Victorian restoration. The award winning restoration overseen by our architect Richard Andrews, of Carden & Godfrey has returned the building to a more simple interior style. We have toilet facilities, underfloor heating, a sound system and hearing loop, a kitchen and free standing comfortable pews! 

The building returned to use at the end of 2013 and now offers a warm and friendly welcome with modern facilities in a characterful medieval building.  The church has a roof frame which has been Dendron dated to 1275, one of the oldest in the area, this has been exposed during the restoration after being hidden since the 1860's. The restored building has a new West window, along with a glass balustrade to the new gallery and a new Nave window complete with the Royal Coat-of Arms to mark the Queens Diamond Jubilee, these are all by Mel Howse and well worth seeing.

There is some reason to believe that there has been a church on this site since Saxon times, a Yew tree which fell in 1987 was carbon dated to pre Conquest and Pevsner describes the building as 11th to 13th century. The Manor of Whatlington was held by King Harold II and it may have been here that our last Saxon King heard Mass before the fateful battle in 1066.

The church restoration won a Sussex Heritage Trust Award in July 2014 and has been given a commendation by English Heritage in their Angel Awards.

The church is normally open on Wednesdays and Sundays between 10am and 4pm, but access can be arranged at other times by contacting one of the wardens in advance of an intended visit.