Our eight churches

The Octagon Parish is situated at the western end of Sussex between Chichester and Petersfield and within the South Downs National Park. This rural community consists largely of farmland and is made up of the villages and hamlets of Compton, Forestside, Up Marden, West Marden, North Marden, East Marden, Racton, Stansted, Stoughton and Walderton.

The Octagon contains eight uniquely beautiful churches, many of them several hundred years old, seven of which are still open for public worship.

Click the pictures below for more information.

For information on hymns and church services please click here

    • Forestside 2

    Christchurch, Forestside

    Christchurch, Forestside, was built in 1852 by Charles Dixon, a wealthy Victorian philanthropist and the owner of nearby Stansted House, to serve his estate workers and the village of Forestside. The parish was formed from parts of Stoughton and Up Marden, and has now been combined with them again as part of the parish of the Octagon. The church is Read more…
    • Compton Churchyard1

    St Mary, Compton

    The first documentary evidence of a Church in Compton is found in the Doomsday Survey of 1086. The present church is the outcome of a sensitive restoration in the 1850’s but the late 12th century North arcade and chancel arch are still visible. The church – like all the churches in the Octagon – is normally open during daylight hours. Read more…
    • North Marden 2

    St Mary, North Marden

    This is the northernmost church of the Octagon Parish. Originally a chapel of ease to East Marden and perhaps always approached through a farmyard, St Mary’s is believed to have been founded by Geoffrey, son of Azo, late in the 12th century. It consists of an undivided nave and chancel. The chancel has a semi-circular (apsidal) end, and is one Read more…
    • Stoughton church sunshine

    St Mary, Stoughton

    This is the largest church in the Octagon parish. It is a little-changed 11th century building, and more ambitious in size and style than the typical downland churches. The windows and transept arches were changed in the 12th and 13th centuries, the bell tower raised over the south transept in the late 14th century. The chancel eaves were lowered, possibly Read more…
    • Up Marden interior 1

    St Michael, Up Marden

    All who know the downland church of St Michael regard it as special. There is some debate about its exact age, but it dates from either the 12th or early 13th century. Little has changed since then. Set in a large churchyard surrounded by fields and approached down a farm track, this simple double cell building invites travellers to rest Read more…
    • Stansted

    St Paul’s Chapel, Stansted

    The former parish of Forestside includes the Chapel of St Paul, in the grounds of Stansted Park. The chapel is no longer open for public worship, but it is open to the public when the house and grounds are open. There is normally also a monthly service of prayer, a carol service at Christmas, and a service on Remembrance Day. For more information Read more…
    • East Marden sunshine

    St Peter, East Marden

    One of the churches of the Octagon parish, and once described as “the most modest and least ecclesiastical looking church in the world”, St Peter’s stands on a spur of the South Downs. It consists of an undivided nave and chancel dating from the 12th/13th century, a porch of the 17th century and a vestry added in 1906. It is Read more…
    • Racton interior

    St Peter, Racton

    St Peter, Racton with Lordington is a small 12th Century downland church with a seating capacity of about 60. It contains significant monuments to the Gounter family who owned Racton Manor opposite (now demolished). Music is played on a fine example of a French Alexandre Harmonium. Sunday services are attended by a small number of loyal worshippers, with numbers significantly Read more…

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Donate to help us maintain and support our churches. With very few other resources in the parish, each church provides a heart for the surrounding community.

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