The Grade II* 15th-century St Nicholas’ Church can be found in the small seaside town of Withernsea in East Yorkshire, about 20 miles from Hull, making it our first East Yorkshire church. After Withernsea’s original 12th-century church of St Mary’s was destroyed by the sea in the 15th century, permission was granted to build a new church further inland dedicated to St Nicholas, the patron saint of seafarers. St Nicholas’ Church was consecrated in 1488; however, by 1575 the church was in a state of decay, eventually losing its roof to a violent storm in 1609 and subsequently falling into ruin. The church’s outlook improved in 1855 with the arrival of the railway, as the directors of the Hull and Holderness Railway Company decided to lead a restoration of the church as part of an ambitious scheme by the company’s Chairman Anthony Bannister to create a holiday resort at Withernsea. The plan to turn Withernsea into a seaside destination had considerable initial success and further expansion took place in the 1920s, but the town then declined in the 1930s and 40s and the railway closed in 1965.

A programme of repairs was due to begin in the spring of 2020. However, plans were affected by COVID-19 and works put on hold. Work finally began work on site in January 2021. This programme included re-roofing the nave, chancel, north & south aisles, vestry, organ chamber and porch roofs. Throughout the process masonry repairs were undertaken including stone replacement, consolidation and repointing, as well as stabilising work to masonry in the tower and installing cintec anchors to allow the removal of two existing tie rods. Repair and redecoration of the existing rainwater goods and underground drainage as well as minor repairs to windows and local areas of internal plaster repair and redecoration completed the works and the church was opened again in January 2023..

The new vesting repairs bill was estimated to be £492,224 and the estimated maintenance costs per annum is circa £6,600 inc. VAT.

If you would like to make a contribution towards the upkeep of the church, you can donate on our website.

You can find the walk around guide here. 

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  St Martin's Church, Waithe, Lincolnshire

  17.13 miles

  A fantastically colourful interior

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  All Hallows' Church, Clixby, Lincolnshire

  20.74 miles

  Restored remains by the roadside

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  St Mary's Church, Barnetby-le-Wold, Lincolnshire

  20.89 miles

  A quiet Domesday church