Lullington, The Good Shepherd

Lullington has a single bell, hung in a west facing belfry.
All that remains of Lullington is the chancel to the 12thC church, largely modified in the 14thC. The church in its original form was similar to that at Botolphs. At the west end of the church was a rectangular tower, measuring 12' x 8' 6". It was enlarged around 1350 with the addition of a central west-facing buttress.
A very detailed analysis of the Lullington ruins can be found here, some of which are still exposed today.
Click below for the full article.

Lullington ruins

The Bell

Bell	Weight	Diameter	Hum	Note	Founder	Cast	Canon	Hanging
1		13.88"	714.5 Hz	F	John Warner & Sons Ltd	1894	Yes	Swing

Recording of the Bell

Inscriptions

Photographs

1 Bell, in C#
The earliest church, with its tower, dates back to c.1180, and possibly had a bell or two, similar to that at Warminghurst.
Around the mid 1300s, the church was greatly modified and enlarged to suit a bigger congregation. New bells may have been supplied, but unfortunately, the earliest available reference to bells is dated 1536, when the clerk was paid 1d for ringing.

The Seventeenth Century
We are fortunate in having a few sources of information relating to the structure of the church to form a prediction as to when the tower and nave collapsed.
The churchwardens' presentments for 1674 gives the following for "Lollington", which implies the church still stood.

"Wee present William Weaver of the same parish for a constant player at nynepinnes on the Sabbath day ; Thomas Coulter for not paying his church tax, Is. 8d. ; James Skinner of St. Leonards, John Lunsford the younger, for talking at church and disturbing the minister and congregacion. Wee present there is deteyned from our church tithes to the value of about 30s. per annum, which wee have heard did belong to our vicar, but is now held by a pretended right by the family of Eversfield of [blank] neare Horsham; and that the tenants houlding the farmes for which such tythes are payable are destitute of a church, buryingplace, and minister to baptize their children. Anne Filmore for incontinency William Weaver, Thomas Coulter, for not comeing to church."

Shortly after in 1686, the Chichester diocesan survey states that "The church and steeple are down". This gives us a 12 year window as to when the nave and tower collapsed.

Lullington church floor plan following excavation

(Barr-Hamilton, A. (2021). Excavations at Lullington Church. Sussex Archaeological Collections, 108 p.1 - 22. )

No bells for 100 years?
Soon after the church collapsed, the 1724 diocesan survey was taken which gives no mention about the presence of a bell whatsoever. Interestingly, a painting by James Lambert dated c1780 from the SE corner shows the remains of the chancel without a belfry. Lullington was known for being the poorest in the parish, which is undoubtebly why the church was brought down and not rebuilt.

1806 - A new bell and tower
The west wall of the chancel was rebuilt and made suitable for worship, this time with a small white boarded belfry with a Sussex cap spire. A new bell was added that was only inscribed with the date. It was probably a rather small bell, cast by Thomas I Mears & Son, and hung for swing chiming. However, this bell only lasted till 1894 when the church's fabric was restored.

1894 - The present day bell
During the restoration, John Warner & Sons Ltd supplied Lullington with a new bell, hung for lever chiming. Like most of their small bells, the inscription is around the soundbow and formed using half inch letters. It was cast with a conventional canon, and a cast in crown staple which the tail of the clapper has been bent around.
Additional dimensions:

K Leaver, Bell inspection book III, p.45

Dimentions
Bell	Shoulder circumference	Length from shoulder to lip	Soundbow thickness	Moulding wire configuration
1	24.63"	10"	1" (7.20% of diameter)	2

The bell appears to have been rehung on new fittings for swing chiming in 1954 by R. Norman & K. Hunnbett. These names are pencilled on the headstock above the date, and below the word WYKOMAL. It is hung on bronze plain bearings.

The frame
The frame likely dates back to 1806, and consists of a pair of parallel oak timbers that stretch across the length of the tower, and rest on the wall plates (truss type 1.D).
At a later date, an additional timber brace from the floor to the frame head was added to support the force applied by the bell.
There are 3 pairs of slots for bearings. The earliest appear to be those in the center, followed by those six inches north that could have been added in 1894 by Warners. And finally, the 1954 bearings are another ten inches north, bolted to the top of the frame.

A 22 rung ladder is required to access the bell through a loft hatch in the middle of the ceiling.

Visited with Luca G Greenslade, 06/09/2026.