Thenford Church is dedicated to St Mary the Virgin. According to Pevsner, the round-arched south doorway and the south aisle can be dated to around 1200; the north arcade is about 100 years later. The 13th century chancel appears to have been lengthened, probably in the 14th century, and the bell tower was probably added at that time. Restoration work was carried out at the beginning of the 18th century and again in the last quarter of the 19th century, which was when the north porch was added, but the church remains largely free of unsympathetic ‘improvements’.
Particularly worthy of note are the two early 15th century stained glass windows in the east window of the north aisle, depicting St Christopher and St Anne with the Virgin. The monumental effigy in the north aisle is to Fulk Wodhull; it dates to 1613.
Do please find time to look around the church. Sadly, all the lead was stolen from the roof at the beginning of this year and the Parochial Church Council has to raise £100,000 to replace it with a metal that won’t be a target for thieves, to make good the internal damage caused by water ingress and also to address the problem of damp within the building. We have raised about £25,000 so far.
Damage to roof from the lead theft 
Our best efforts to stop the rain causing more damage
If you would like to make a donation towards this while visiting the arboretum, you can leave it with the team serving teas in Church Barn. If you are not visiting but would still like to help, you can make a donation online using this link: https://givealittle.co/campaigns/59e9e307-2a4d-40aa-ac3b-b1e1c6e2dfc8 . It’s very straightforward. Either way, your help will be much appreciated. Many thanks.