Discover Spixworth: Architecture and Local History

Spixworth is in the Norfolk Broads. If you are planning a hotel stay, you can get to know the village through two main features: its historic architecture and a walk that can be done as a circular route. The buildings differ in function, materials and form; the walk offers another point of reference for planning your time.

Architectural styles and historic details

The “Barn at Site of Spixworth Hall” is a threshing barn with three bays. It has red brick walls and a steeply pitched clay-tiled roof. Its three-bay layout, masonry and roof form offer different points of reference for understanding the barn’s architecture.

The “Granary to West of Barn” stands west of the barn and was formerly a granary for Spixworth Hall. Its sundial plaque on the south wall bears the date 1730. A dial is set above a square stone sundial. This highlights the building’s former use as a granary and the arrangement of the sundial as distinct aspects of the building.

The “Garden Wall and Gatepiers South of Barn and Gaffer's Cottage” comprise an 18th-century garden wall and gate piers, as well as a brick gate with a stepped gable. The date applies to the wall and gate piers; the stepped gable is a distinctive feature of the brick gate.

St Peter’s Church and The Old Rectory

St Peter’s Church in Spixworth has a large, unified chancel and nave in the Decorated style, as well as a slender, unbuttressed west tower. The tower may have belonged to an earlier, smaller church. The large chancel and nave and the slender tower provide contrasting architectural accents; the tower’s possible association with an earlier church remains uncertain. Inside the church is a Norman font. This places the exterior architecture and an interior feature side by side as distinct points of interest.

The late Georgian rectory known as “The Old Rectory” is built of red brick and has a hipped slate roof. A hipped roof slopes down on all sides; the slate covering also differs from the clay tiles on the threshing barn. The buildings can therefore be compared by roof shape and material. A stone dated 1705 has been reset in the north wall. The date belongs to the stone; the rectory itself is late Georgian. The stone is dated 25 years earlier than the sundial plaque bearing the date 1730.

Walk and planning

You can do the walk in Spixworth as a circular route if you use the paved Buxton Road for the return. Check the route conditions locally. There are a few parking spaces on Quaker Lane for the walk; as availability may change, check before you travel.

Discover more destinations: North Walsham, Watton, East Runton, Weybourne, Fakenham, Corpusty, Blakeney, Stiffkey

For the main travel overview: Norfolk.