New Tower Screen

When Kelshall PCC obtained permission for a WC & kitchenette in the Tower space back in 2010 English Heritage suggested that the oak screen across the entrance to the tower be decorated with paintings. Now six years later the project has come to fruition and the painted panels have been installed. Our Artist is Sarah Ellis who has devoted many painstaking hours to the task and achieved a spectacular outcome.

The PCC came up with the idea that there should be three figures, the first the Saint after whom the Church was named. Little is known about St Faith but she lived in the third century in Aquitaine and was a victim of Roman persecution. The other two figures relate to the period 1380-1430 when the church was built. Richard II was king until 1399 and John Fordham, Bishop of Ely, the see in which Kelshall fell at that time. Both Richard and Bishop John it is believed are represented in the two sculpted faces either side of the church porch. Over 80 descendants of the Fordham family have been buried in St Faiths churchyard and the family have been local landowners since the 16th century and probably earlier. The present generation is represented by Jeremy Fordham of Odsey Park whose name will be inscribed at the head of the screen alongside Jill Elwyn Cremer, whose legacy assisted in the funding, and our Rector.

The picture above shows the kitchenette which is accessed by the two doors displaying the paintings of Richard and Bishop John. The third door accesses the passage to the WC

The work has also involved refurbishment of the font and its relocation at the East end of the South Aisle which is shown in the right-hand picture.