St Peter & St Paul
Charing, Kent
Charing is a pretty village, and Market Place is lined with old buildings of flint and brick, including the ruins of an archbishop's palace.
St Mary’s sits on the site of a Saxon church, it has been the centre of village life in its current form since the 13th century and still shows lots of historic features. We have a 13th century Jesse window, one of the few outside major cathedrals. We also have a contemporary window showing birth and new life installed for the millennium. Our elegant vaulted chancel is framed by tall trefoil arches, Halstead called it a village cathedral. We have a visitors’ trail to help you discover all the interesting areas.
We lie under the North Downs on the old Pilgrims path to Canterbury and if you are exhausted after a long stretch along the Pilgrim’s way you can sit in our green churchyard where you can rest and restore yourself. Our services range from traditional to modern and include coffee and cake sessions with breakfast on the first Sunday.
We welcome families to all our non BCP services and provide activities for children, even if you are just visiting. We hold a special all age service once a month which often has a café church layout. Messy Church meets monthly in the village or nearby and caters for families with children of primary age.
If you are researching your ancestors we have a display of WWI families with brief biographical notes and a map showing where they lived. There is also a register of the graves in the churchyard, many of which are very old.