Church Heritage Record 606332

Clerestoried nave with north and south aisles, chancel with five-sided apse sanctuary, south-west tower of four stages, north-east organ loft and vestry. Church hall at west end (main hall, committee room, WCs, storage and kitchen) with gallery above. Crypt.

The existing church stands on the site of a medieval chapel of ease. 2003 and 2009 watching briefs in Brenchley Gardens (both by AOC Archaeology) discovered 73 inhumations, mostly post-medieval, with a small group of medieval burials in an area away from the main group; and a small quantity of disarticulated human, representing up to 15 individuals. Works to dig a trench for water mains in 2004 close to the church uncovered an additional post-medieval body.

In addition, Maidstone stands on a long-distance Roman Road, and Pevsner notes that various Roman remains have been found in the town – though it is not known whether these denote a settlement or simply a larger concentration of occupation due to the vicinity of the Roman Road. The Archaeological Data Service records various Roman remains around the area local to St Faith’s, though none on the site itself.

The site has the potential for both human remains (medieval and post-medieval), relating to the earlier burial ground. There is also the potential that foundations and other artefacts relating to the medieval chapel remain. Given the central Maidstone location, there is a small chance of earlier archaeology, including Roman.

The current church stands on the site of a medieval chapel of ease. The principal church of Maidstone in the medieval period was St Mary, later the collegiate church of All Saints. The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent suggests that St Faith’s was “most probably erected for the use of those inhabitants of this parish, who lived at too great a distance to frequent the other [i.e. All Saints]. It seems to have been surrendered up into the king's hands, in conformity to the act of the 1st year of king Edward VI and, with the church-yard, to have been purchased of the crown afterwards by the inhabitants; but whether then used for religious worship does not appear. Some time afterwards it became part of the estate of the Maplesdens, of whom it was purchased in the reign of king James I. by Arthur Barham, esq. who possessed the manor of Chillington, at which time he acknowledged the right of the corporation to use the chapel of St. Faith for divine service, and the chapelyard for burials, if they thought fit.”

By the end of the 18th century (at the time the Topographical Survey was published) only the chancel was standing.

Maidstone grew in wealth and status from the late 16th century and through the 19th century, culminating in the formation of the County Council in 1889. Much development occurred from the beginning of the 19th century, with D.A. Alexander responsible for the largest commissions of the time. His pupil was another notable architect for Maidstone, John Whichcord, who was in turn the mentor to E.W. Stephens, the architect of St Faith’s. Pevsner states: “The town’s most active mid-Victorian architect was … E.W. Stephens, who became a committed gothicist”.

In addition to the new church, the Victorian development of the site and surrounds included the establishment of Brenchley Gardens on the former burial ground alongside the chapel of ease. This was presented to the town by Mr Julius Brenchley and was laid out to plans by Alexander McKenzie, 1871-73. Chillington Manor to the south, built after 1561 by Nicholas Barham, was “heavily restored” (Pevsner) to become the town’s museum in 1875, adding to the picture of a wide scale civic improvement of the area. The Technical Schools (A.W. Smith) and Bentlif Art Gallery (Hubert Benstead) were added to the complex in the 1890s. Further extensions and improvements occurred in the 1920s and, more recently, with a new wing in 2010-11 by Hugh Broughton Architects.

Important in the life of the parish in the 19th century was Robert James Worley, who has several memorials in the church, notably the east window. He left a bequest upon his death in 1899 for the annual granting of alms to poor women in the parish.

The site stands within a conservation area, so TPOs apply. There are no other ecological considerations noted in associated with the site.

The building is mostly of a single phase of construction, clear from the consistently Decorated style throughout. A tall nave of five bays, with paired lancet clerestory windows, with simple tracery of trefoiled arches with single trefoils above. The west elevation of the nave has a rose window comprising a sexfoil and trefoils. Below are two tall lancets of two lights with cinquefoils, with an empty statue niche between. Above the rose window and at the east end are small trefoils to the top of the gables. Buttresses to all but south-west corner, where the porch and tower stand.

The drop arch entrance to the south porch has paired piers with floral carved capitals. The hoodmould terminates with carved corbel heads, both much worn. Consecration stone (20 September 1872) to right of door. The square tower of four stages with corner buttresses is reportedly of later date, but the design is consistent with the rest of the church and from the historic plans it can be assumed that it was always intended to be built. The tower stage (ringing chamber) has large three-light windows with sexfoils. Third stage has pairs of narrow lancets with clock above, set in pedimented surround; black painted face with gilded numbers and hands. Upper, belfry stage has large, paired openings of two-lights with trefoil over, with slate louvres. Scalloped and round pierced carving to top, but pinnacles removed.

The lean-to north and south aisles comprise five and four bays respectively, with the southwest tower shortening the south aisle. A plain stringcourse runs below the windows and stepped buttresses define the bays. The windows are of three-light with paired trefoils; the south aisle has an east window of three lights with cinquefoil, whilst the north aisle abuts the organ loft at the east end. The organ loft is of slightly lower height to aisle, carrying the same roof pitch, and has one small window at west end, to same design as clerestory windows.

The chancel is lower than the nave, and has a polygonal apse with three pointed gables and gargoyles at the gable bases. Three principal windows are lancets of two lights with trefoil over; smaller window of same design on north side and two on south side. A simple chevron stringcourse runs below the windows.

The vestry matches the chancel in its polygonal east side, though is much smaller in scale. The four windows are trefoil-headed lancets; the doorway is a pointed segmental arch with timber door. A decorative cross of fine metal stands at the roof apex.

A 1970s extension projects from the west end of the nave: flat-roofed and constructed in faced concrete block, with square windows at high level.

The entrance to the church is through the base of the tower, with double timber doors with simple iron hinges. The door to the north was original access to nave but now leads to the hall. The glazed, timber-framed door to the east that leads to the nave stands in a modern opening. The door in splay in the north-west corner provides access to the ringing chamber, via a spiral stair. The ceiling has stop-chamfered principal beams with exposed joists.

Inside, the nave and aisles have been reduced from five bays to three, with the partitioning of the westernmost bays. North and south aisles of pointed arches with clustered piers and carved foliate/floral capitals, each of different design. Stringcourse runs below clerestory windows in nave. Infilled pointed segmental arch at east end of north aisle, with plain modern door leading into vestry.  Nave roof of hammerbeam trusses supported on simple corbels; aisle roofs are simple trusses and exposed rafters.

There are two steps up to the chancel and two up to the sanctuary. The chancel arch is dropped, with grouping of three piers to each side and carved capitals like those in the nave, in addition to carved female heads. Within the chancel, eight carved angels at roof-plate level around the apse, each one unique. On north side, arched opening to organ loft and door to vestry set in four-centred arched doorway, with hoodmould terminated by male heads.

A gallery, with the church hall under, occupies the two western bays. Edwardian panelling has been reused to form the partition in the nave, and the original pews have been reinstated on the raked gallery. The gallery is reached by modern stairs. The spaces within the hall are plain, with some carved capitals from the original arcade visible. The plan comprises male and female WCs on the south side, a large hall with kitchen to west, a committee room and storage areas.

The vestry is in two parts, with two-light window with the dividing wall having an internal, two-light window with trefoil. An in-filled truss at high level in ‘outer’ (western) vestry is thought to have originally formed a partition between the vestry and organ loft. The ‘inner’ (eastern) vestry has simple panelling to window cill level. The ceiling is plastered, with exposed purlins.