Fifty years after the restoration work by Jeffry Wyattville, we find St Peter’s once more in a dilapidated state. Wyattville’s solution for a makeover of this ancient building was to cover the medieval stonework with stucco (plaster), a material that could never stand the test of time. By the 1870s, this stucco was cracked and crumbling, and many interior features were proving unsatisfactory. At some point in the 19th century, part of the south aisle of the church had been partitioned off and a large external door inserted to create a garage for the town’s fire engine. The PCC began to make plans to restore the church to its former medieval glory.
