Church of St James the Less, Tatham

Church of St James the Less, Tatham
Church of St James the Less, Tatham, from the southeast
Church of St James the Less, Tatham Location in the City of Lancaster district
Coordinates: 54°07′09″N 2°36′16″W / 54.1191°N 2.6045°W / 54.1191; -2.6045
OS grid reference	SD 606694
Location	Tatham, Lancashire
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Website	St James the Less, Tatham
History
Dedication	Saint James the Less
Architecture
Status	Parish church
Functional status	Active
Heritage designation	Grade II*
Designated	4 October 1967
Architect(s)	Paley and Austin (restoration)
Architectural type	Church
Style	Norman, Gothic
Specifications
Materials	Sandstone, stone slate roof
Administration
Parish	Wray
Deanery	Tunstall
Archdeaconry	Lancaster
Diocese	Blackburn
Province	Province of York
Laity
Churchwarden(s)	Phyllis Holt, Norman Dove
Parish administrator	Sue Marsden

The Church of St James the Less is in the village of Tatham, Lancashire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Tunstall, the archdeaconry of Lancaster and the diocese of Blackburn. Its benefice is united with those of St Wilfrid, Melling, St John the Baptist, Tunstall, St Peter, Leck, the Good Shepherd, Lowgill, and Holy Trinity, Wray, to form the benefice of East Lonsdale. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. It stands above the flood plain of the River Wenning.

A church has been present on the site since at least the Norman era. Most of the fabric of the present church dates from the 15th century, with elements remaining from the Norman period and from the 13th century. The tower was rebuilt in 1722. In 1885–87 the Lancaster architects Paley and Austin added a saddleback roof to the tower. They also carried out an extensive restoration that included adding an organ loft and a vestry, repairing walls, adding windows, fittings and a floor, and removing the ceiling. The restoration cost £3,269 (equivalent to £330,000 in 2015).

St James' is constructed in sandstone rubble, and has a stone slate roof. Its plan consists of a nave, a north aisle, a south porch, a chancel, a northeast vestry and organ chamber, and a west tower. The tower stands on a plinth, and has two setbacks. At its summit is a saddleback roof with gables to the north and south. Along the south wall of the church is one three-light window and three two-light windows, all containing Perpendicular tracery, and a buttress. The outer doorway of the porch has a pointed arch, above which is a slate sundial. The inner doorway is Norman, and has been much restored. On the north wall of the aisle are two windows, one with two lights, the other with three lights, both with trefoils under flat heads. Between them is a doorway with a pointed arch. The organ chamber is gabled and contains a three-light window with Perpendicular tracery. The vestry has a two-light window with Y-tracery. The east window has three lights with intersecting tracery.