Securing a Future for St Mary's Ashbury

Many parishioners enjoy the twice-yearly services at St Mary’s Church, November’s service of Light, traditionally followed by fireworks, always being a special moment in this 13th century church. Derek manfully plays the pump organ while a packed congregation provide vibrant singing, perhaps in anticipation of the home baked refreshments to follow.

Check through the visitors’ book and it is clear that this small isolated church is visited much more frequently than one might imagine -- sometimes out of historical or family interest, often as a place for quiet meditation. Tony Woollcombe, long since emigrated to Australia, notes that their family has owned and managed the church ever since they married into the Walter family in 1664. Today, St Mary's Church stands isolated in the middle of its quaint churchyard, commanding a spectacular position overlooking Dartmoor to the south, and often with sheep in the fields below. The view takes your breath away. Nearby, converted farm buildings now provide much-needed homes.

It is hard to imagine that this was once a thriving, self-sufficient estate. The church met the religious needs of all who lived and worked there. A church has existed on this site since at least 1297. However, the current church was rebuilt in 1871 by Archdeacon Henry Woollcombe, the then owner of the Ashbury estate. The tower, dating back to the 16th or 17th century, is all that remains of the earlier structure. The present church is Victorian. It was rebuilt on the old foundations and according to the original plans (White's History, 1878). A survey conducted in early 2014 noted: "The church features attractive corbel stones, window frames, coloured leaded glass panels, and a blocked priest's door on the south wall of the chancel. Although much of the church was rebuilt in the 19th century, it is likely that many stones were reused from the older 16th/17th century building."

Headstones dating from the mid-16th century can be seen at the base of the tower. They are dedicated to the Walter family, who owned Ashbury at that time. The estate passed from the Walters to a Woollcombe cousin, and the Woollcombe family owned it until the 1930s. The church is small. Its size and remote location meant that by the 1980s, it was no longer viable as a place of worship. To preventit from falling into ruin, it was sold to a member of the Woollcombe family in 1982. Three of her relatives have since maintained it.

From 2014 to 2015, the church tower underwent extensive restoration, and last year, the decaying floor was replaced. Like many other churches, St Mary's is an important part of our country's historical and cultural heritage. The owners were keen to ensure that the church could be preserved for the future. To do this, they recently created a charity into which the church was transferred, with the trustees being three of the former owners. This arrangement facilitates the collection of donations, application for grants, encouraging legacies, and the benefit of tax advantages such as Gift Aid. The charity provides a firmer basis for the church's future, while maintaining continuity in its management and continuing role in the local and wider community.