All Saints Church, Sidley, was constructed between 1909 and 1929, and is now listed at Grade II with Historic England, list entry number 1470572, for its Architectual and Historic interest. We are described "as a modest and eclectic church designed by the noted architect G E S Streatfeild," with "quality craftsmanship, subtlety and survival of its interior."
We are also where you will find the War Memorial for the Parish of Sidley which shows the tragic losses the families from our surrounding community suffered during World War One and Two.
Sidley was once a small hamlet within the parish of St Peter’s, Bexhill. In 1865 a National School was built in Sidley, and for 20 years it was used both for education and as a place of worship on Sundays. In 1885 a temporary iron church was built on the adjoining site. In 1909 following the demolition of the iron church a more permanent church was designed by Granville Edward Stewart Streatfeild, the nave of which was constructed with a limited budget of only £2000. A later legacy donation by parishioner John David Atchison funded a second phase of construction, to elaborate on the earlier design. The chancel, the south-east chapel and the north-east tower were constructed between 1927-1929, along with a new vestry to the south adjoining the nave via a link.
The exposed timber roof structure and aisle arches give you the impression of being in a barn. The nave has parquet flooring throughout. It is thought the building never had pews fitted, as an old postcard has been found featuring a photograph of the church before the second phase of works began in the late 1920s and shows the nave laid out with chairs.
The Church of All Saints' was consecrated by the Bishop of Chichester on All Saints' Day in 1930, and it became a separate parish from St Peter’s, Bexhill.
In 1991 a fire damaged the chancel, which was subsequently repaired and re-ordered. The timber roof structure survived the fire relatively unscathed. The organ console and choir stalls, previously in the chancel, were relocated to their present position at the west end of the nave, and a stone font was placed into the step leading into the chancel.
Streatfeild (1869-1947) was a Scottish architect who had close ecclesiastical links via members of his family and built several churches, of which three others are listed: St Peter, Ticehurst, 1904 (Grade II); St Michael, Eastbourne, 1901-1911 (Grade II); and St Augustine, Brighton, 1896-1914 (Grade II).
http://www.sussexparishchurches.org
http://www.historicengland.org.uk