Forton is a rural parish, the patron of the Benefice of All Saints' Church is the Bishop of Lichfield and the parish is in the Deanery of Edgmond and Shifnal. The church serves a rural population consisting of the village of Forton and the hamlets of Sutton and Meretown, although part of the parish extends beyond the civic boundary of Newport.

There was a church at Forton in 1199. This beautiful church stands on a clear elevated site and is set in a tranquil rural scene overlooking the Aqualate estate.

The most conspicuous feature of the church are the long Georgian south front and the massive tower. To the left of the path as you approach the entrance to the church stands an ancient yew tree (picture on left) which is 1300 years old and is the second oldest yew tree in Staffordshire.

As you enter the church, which is open daily during daylight hours, the screen to the left houses the tower with 6 bells. For more details of the bells click here. In front of the tower steps is the marble font of wine glass design which dates back to 1723.

Our friendly congregation welcomes you to join our regular Sunday and mid-week services. Details of the services are listed below click here.

The church consists of a nave with same-width chancel under a continuous roof, a north aisle with a low east vestry and a three stage tower. The church has undergone several major changes but the east and north wall of the chancel survive and the round head slit window on the chancel north wall confirms that the church has a 12th. Century foundation. The three light pointed east window with rectangular tracery would suggest 15th. Century modifications but it is in fact an early 20th. Century insertion. The three stage tower is 13th century. The multi-stepped diagonal buttresses, however, are 15th. Century work as is the upper stage crenellated parapet with eight crocketted pinnacles.

The 18th. Century reordering created an uninterrupted space within the nave and chancel with a high corniced ceiling and plastered walls. The five bay arcade is contemporary with this and has Truscan columns and raised pedestals supporting plain round arches. All the roof timbers of the north aisle are in oak and the roof is lined in the same material.

This feature and the pedimented oak screen to recreate the chancel is very high quality work and was part of the reordering that took place in the early 20th. Century. In his book "Historic Churches and Monuments of Staffordshire", Pevsner considered the church "impressive" and included a photograph of the church.

The Skrymsher Monument
This Monument (of Staffordshire alabaster and sculpted by Garret Hollemans) is that of Sir Thomas Skrymsher.Knight, of Aqualate and his wife Anne, daughter of Ralph Sneyd of Keele and effigies of their five sons, John, Thomas, Ralph, Gerard and Robert and four daughters, Anne, Elizabeth Mary and Margaret. They were married on 15th. September 1595 and Sir Thomas died in 1633 and his wife in 1656. Sir Thomas was Lord of the Manor of Mere and built the first Hall at Aqualate.

Below is a list of our normal services. Any special services will be added when they have been arranged.

First Sunday of the Month	6.30 pm	Evensong
Second Sunday of the Month	10.00 am	Holy Communion
Third Sunday of the Month	10.00 am	Holy Communion
Fourth Sunday of the Month	10.00 am	Morning Service
Fifth Sunday of the Month	10.00 am	Holy Communion
	6.30 pm	Evensong at The Rylands Nursing Home in Newport
	Coffee is served in Church after the morning services,
Thursday	10.00 am	A said service of Holy Communion is taken in the Church every Thursday morning at 10.00 am. Coffee is served afterwards.
Those wishing to hold Baptisms, Weddings or Funerals at the church are welcome to contact the priest; namely Rev. Edward Ward Tel: 01952 814886. Email: e.ward17@btinternet.com For more information about Weddings please click here. *New: For information about Wedding Blessings and Renewal of Wedding Vows - click here. *New: Baptisms at All Saints Baptisms at All Saints are always a special occasion. The Church is decorated with flowers, especially the Georgian Font. Baptisms usually take place during a morning service but can be arranged for a time to suit you. At Baptism parents promise to raise their child to know God loves them and to help them to follow Jesus as a member of the Church. For further details please ring Revd Edward Ward on 01952 814886.

Click on thumbnails to see large pictures.

Window over Atlar	clear=all>	Sir Thomas Skrymsher Monument		The Organ		The Altar
The Graveyard		The Original Alar
Rosemary and Peter Hammond and their donkey greeted worshipers as they arrived at the church for the Palm Sunday service.
The congregation gather for the Easter Sunday service. The cross at the front of the church, which was fashioned from the church's christmas tree for the Lent services, was decorated for Easter.
This picture shows Hilary Phillips, Rev Edward Ward and the Bishop of Shrewsbury.		This picture shows Owen and Rachael Rigby from Rosemont Builders with the Bishop of Shrewsbury.
The Bishop commissioned Rev Preb Edward Ward as Associate Minister at All Saints.  The Rev Ward will be taking the Mothering Sunday service on 11th March at 10am. The Bishop also blessed the former choir vestry which is now a new office and new kitchen area which have been constructed by Rosemont Builders.   He also dedicated a new Advent stand and candles in memory of the late Stella Laidler.

Pictures will be added in the near future.

Forton is a small village about 1 mile North East of Newport on the A519 Newport to Eccleshall Road. The church, whose pinnacled tower is visible from either direction, is just a few hundred yards down a lane on the South side of the main road. From Newport turn right a the crossroads just before The Swan Inn. The postcode for the church is TF10 8BY.

Maps to show the position of All Saints' Church
If you would like to see a very detailed map of the area (1:50,000) then click here to go to Streetmap. This will open in a separate window.

If you would like an smaller scale map (1:200,000) showing Forton relative to the major road network then click here to go to Streetmap. This again will open in a separate window.

Newsletters
We usually produce a bi-monthly newsletter which includes services, forthcoming events, reports of previous events and dates of meetings.
These will be included in this section as pdf files which you can download.

1: Newsletter February / March 2020

2: Newsletter December 2019 / January 2020

3: Newsletter October / November 2019

4: Newsletter August / September 2019

5: Newsletter April / May 2019

6: Newsletter February / March 2019

7: Newsletter October / November 2018

8: Newsletter August / September 2018

9: Newsletter June / July 2018

10: Newsletter Article June / July 2018

11: Newsletter April / May 2018

12: Newsletter February / March 2018

13: Newsletter December17 / eJanuary 2018

14: Newsletter October / November 2017

15: Newsletter August / September 2017

16: Services June / July 2017

For detailed information about the Rectors of Forton, please click here to go to another page in a separated window.

Searching for your Family History
Visitors to the Church are always welcome and there is a detailed plan of the Church yard available at the back of the Church.  However, we only keep current registers in the Church.  Older church registers for Baptisms, Weddings and Funerals are now stored at the SALT Museum in Stafford.

www.staffordshire.gov.uk/leisure/archives/williamsalt/home.aspx

Diocese of Lichfield Website Anglicans Online Website St. John the Baptist - Whittington near Oswestry Beckbury Group Ministry - 6 parishes (near Shifnal) St. James the Great - Norton Canes St. Paul's Church - Newcastle - under - Lyme