Church of St Michael

St Michael’s is a Church of England building in the village of Colyford, Devon. It was completed in 1889 to a design by R. M. Fulford and built by Messrs Luscombe and Son of Exeter. The church stands on ground given by the Scarborough family, who paid for its construction as a memorial to Admiral Impey. Mrs J. L. Scarborough and her son Elijah Impey Scarborough provided the funds and chose the Arts and Crafts style. In 1903 the Bishop of Crediton consecrated the building for regular worship and village use. The church is made of local flint rubble with Beer limestone dressings and a Staffordshire-tiled roof. Inside, pine benches face a nave and chancel, with a south transept, porch and vestry. A single bellcote rises above the west gable, capped by a small spirelet. Three east-end windows were designed by F. Drake of Exeter, and the font is carved Beer stone on a Hamstone base. An oak reredos was added in 1892, and a further Drake window in 1895 marks the family’s return from California. Visitors enter through the south-west porch into a light interior of buff and red brick. The stained glass at the east end throws coloured patterns across the nave. The small nave can seat about two hundred on its pine benches. The north vestry and south transept offer quiet corners for reflection. Outside, the flint walls and limestone bands sit well among the Devon lanes.