St Wulfram's Church, Grantham

This article is about the parish church in Grantham. For the church dedicated to Wulfram of Sens, see St Wulfran's Church, Ovingdean.

St Wulfram's Church, Grantham
Parish Church of St Wulfram, Grantham
St Wulfram's Church, Grantham Location within Lincolnshire
52°54′53″N0°38′27″W / 52.9148°N 0.6407°W / 52.9148; -0.6407
Location	Grantham, Lincolnshire
Country	England
Denomination	Church of England
Churchmanship	Broad Church/Inclusive catholic [1]
Website	stwulframs.org.uk discoverstwulframs.org.uk
History
Dedication	Wulfram of Sens
Architecture
Heritage designation	Grade I listed [2]
Specifications
Capacity	Seating for 700, room for a further 200 standing[ citation needed ]
Length	196 feet (60 m)
Width	75 feet (23 m)
Spire height	274 feet (84 m)
Bells	14 (1676:1946:2000:2012)
Tenor bell weight	32cwt 1qtr 11lbs in C#
Administration
Province	Canterbury
Diocese	Lincoln
Archdeaconry	Boston
Deanery	Grantham [3]
Parish	Grantham
Clergy
Rector	Fr Stuart Cradduck, Fr Clay Roundtree (assistant rector)
Curate(s)	Mthr Hannah Grivell, Mthr Kate Hough
Archdeacon	Dr Justine Allain Chapman
Laity
Director of music	Dr Tim Williams
Organist	Dr Andrew Wyatt
Churchwarden	Mr Andrew Gregory : Mrs. Jan Burrows
Verger	Mr David West

The nave of St Wulfram's, looking west

St Wulfram's Church, Grantham, is the Anglican parish church of Grantham in Lincolnshire, England. The church is a Grade I listed building and has the second tallest spire in Lincolnshire after St James' Church, Louth. ^[2]

Vicars

The Reverend William Glaister was the curate and later vicar of the church in 1876. His sister Elizabeth Glaister was a novelist with an interest in embroidery. She created ecclesiastical embroideries for the church. ^[4]

The spire

In his book England's Thousand Best Churches, Simon Jenkins begins his description of St Wulfram's: "Here is the finest steeple in England", ^[5] and in 2020 an online contest run by poet Jay Hulme named it as the finest non-cathedral English church. ^[6]

The spire, at 274 feet (84 m), is the sixth highest in the country (Salisbury, Norwich and Old Coventry Cathedrals' are higher), and third highest of any parish church, after the Church of St Walburge, Preston, and St James' Church, Louth. It is the second highest of any Anglican parish church in the UK, after St James', and second highest in Lincolnshire, after St James'.^{[ citation needed ]}

In 2013 an appeal was launched to save the spire. ^[7]

Music

The present organ by John Harris and John Byfield dates from 1735. It was rebuilt by George Pike England in 1809 and 1833, by Forster and Andrews between 1845 and 1868, by Norman and Beard in 1906 (producing the organ that may be heard today), by Rushworth and Dreaper in 1952, by Cousans of Lincoln in 1972, and by Phillip Wood and Sons of Huddersfield in 1993–94 when a fourth manual was added. ^[8] The case designed by Sir Walter Tapper RA took eight years to complete. The old organ case now encloses the choir vestry in the north west corner of the church. The specification for the organ, regarded as one of the finest in Lincolnshire, can be found at the National Pipe Organ Register.^{[ citation needed ]}

Organists

• Mr Sweet 1745–1755
• Andrew Strother 1755–1816 (jointly with Francis Sharp 1808–1816)
• Francis Sharp 1808–1832 (jointly with Andrew Strother 1808–1816)
• William Dixon 1832 ^[9] –1863 ^[10] –1865
• George Dixon 1865–1886 (previously organist of St James' Church, Louth)
• Richard Thomas Back 1886 ^[11] –1909 ^[12] –1911
• Frank Radcliffe 1911–1914 (later organist of St Mary's Church, Nottingham)
• Edward Brown 1914 ^[11] –1941
• Stephen John Mundy 1941–1961
• Philip Joseph Lank 1961–1983 (previously assistant organist of Peterborough Cathedral)
• Nicholas Kerrison 1984–1988
• John Ball 1988–1992
• John Wilkes 1992–1996
• Ian Major 1996–1997
• Philip Robinson 1997–2001
• Michael Sands 2002–2007
• Tim Williams 2008–

Clock

The chimes were repaired and a new clock installed by Gillett and Bland of Croydon in December 1876. ^[13] The costs of this work were £280 (equivalent to £33,294in 2023). ^[14] The clock was set going on 17 February 1877. ^[15]

On 5 November 1877 the new clock was inspected by Sir Edmund Beckett, who assessed that it was one of the best turned out by Gillett and Bland. ^[16]

Gallery

• 
  The church painted by J. M. W. Turner, c. 1797
• 
  The font, with cover by Sir Walter Tapper
• 
  Reredos
• 
  Five hatchments on the south wall

See also

• Bishop of Grantham

References

1. "St Wulfram's Church, Grantham: Assistant Master of the Music Application Pack" (PDF). pathways.churchofengland.org. The Church of England. May 2022. Archived from the original (pdf) on 28 May 2022. Retrieved 28 May 2022.
2. Historic England. "Church of St Wulfram (1062501)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 6 June 2012.
3. "St Wulfram, Grantham". A Church Near You. The Church of England. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
4. Hulse, Lynn (11 July 2024), "Glaister, Elizabeth (1839–1892), author and embroiderer" , Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/odnb/9780198614128.013.90000382472, ISBN   978-0-19-861412-8 , retrieved 31 July 2024
5. Jenkins, Simon (1999). England's Thousand Best Churches. London: Penguin Books. pp. 436–437. ISBN   978-0-14-103930-5.
6. Davies, Tracey. "St Wulfram's Church named as 'finest church in England' in national competition". Grantham Journal.
7. "Saving the Spire". savegranthamsspire.org.uk/. 2014. Retrieved 2 January 2014.
8. "The Organ" at stwulframs.org.uk
9. Norfolk Chronicle – Saturday 01 December 1832
10. Morris' Directory and Gazetteer 1863^{[ page needed ]}
11. Grantham Journal – Saturday 24 April 1886
12. Kelly's Directory of Lincolnshire 1909, p. 230
13. "The Parish Church" . Grantham Journal. United Kingdom. 9 December 1876. Retrieved 20 December 2025– via British Newspaper Archive.
14. UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth . Retrieved 7 May 2024.
15. "St Wolfran's Clock and Chimes" . Grantham Journal. United Kingdom. 17 February 1877. Retrieved 20 December 2025– via British Newspaper Archive.
16. "The Church Clock and Chimes" . Grantham Journal. England. 10 November 1877. Retrieved 23 August 2017– via British Newspaper Archive.

Sources

• Jenkins, Simon (1999), England's Thousand Best Churches, London, Pengin Books, ISBN   978-0-14-103930-5
• Pevsner, Nikolaus; Harris, John; The Buildings of England: Lincolnshire, Penguin (1964), revised by Nicholas Antram (1989), Yale University Press. ISBN   0300096208

External links

Media related to St Wulfram's, Grantham at Wikimedia Commons

• St Wulfram's official website