ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST CHURCH
GRIMSTON, LEICESTERSHIRE
BUILDING & CHURCHYARD
RESTORATION WORK
There have been at least four periods during which restoration work is known to have been carried out on the church, in about 1866, 1898, 1994 and 2019. The major restoration of 1866, which took place under the leadership of the Revd. Robert Noble (to whom there is a memorial plaque on the north wall of the nave) took place shortly after the estate, including the churches of Wartnaby and Grimston, were acquired by Francis Reckitt in 1865. This restoration is referred to in an article in the Leicester Journal of 30th November 1866, following the re-opening of the church. John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales records in 1871 that the church was ‘recently in disrepair’.
We know of the restoration of 1898 from an article in the Grantham Journal of 4th June of that year, when the church was re-opened by Mrs Reckitt. This work included the re-leading of the nave roof, which had become urgently needed. The roof of the nave was again re-leaded in 2009, when an inscription was found scratched in the lead which showed that the previous work was carried out in 1890.
In 1994 the drainage to the tower and north of the nave was improved by lowering the external ground level and the installation of French drains. Photographs were taken during this work, and while it was carried out the large millstone grit monolith was discovered in the churchyard to the south-west of the tower.
The recent restoration work carried out in 2019 has involved principally the replacement of ironstone in the tower, which had eroded badly, and the stabilization and re-plastering of the chancel. Further work has been carried out to improve drainage. External stonework on the chancel was also repaired, and a new tower clock mechanism was installed. This restoration was supported by the National Heritage Lottery Fund, Allchurches Trust Ltd, The Headley Trust, The Leicestershire Historic Churches Trust, The Helen Jean Cope Charity and a Shire Grant from Leicestershire County Council. It could not have been completed without the enthusiastic commitment, both financial and otherwise, of those living in Grimston.
In addition to planned restoration work, at some time the north transept became unsafe and collapsed, dragging down part of the north wall of the chancel. The type of brick used in rebuilding the wall suggests the repair took place in about 1740.
