TQ8209 : East Window, St Clement's church, Hastings
taken 9 years ago, near to Hastings, East Sussex, England

Local people were depicted as the characters in the window, for example the man with the saw is Thomas Edward Baker, the woman in WVS uniform is Elsie Cole, wife of the artist, the vicar is Rev. Napier, although others have said the vicar and nurse are Cole and his wife. Any clarification would be welcomed.
Grade II*listed
St Clement's Church dates back to 1080, however it was destroyed in a French raid of 1377 and rebuilt shortly after.The church was restored in the 19th century.
It consists of a south west tower, nave with north and south aisles with chapels and chancel in one, there is no chancel arch. The tower has flint and stone chequerwork and a south west turret.
The south aisle has gabled buttresses and an embattled parapet. There is a south porch which is 19th century. Most of the windows were replaced in the 19th century.
The church has much in common with All Saints in Hastings, although was probably more important.
The nave and aisles are the same height, the aisles being six bays long, the arcades have four shafts and four hollows which date from the late 14th century. The aisles extend eastward as chapels, the chancel has two bays. The church is built on a slope, and there is a sacristy beneath.
The ceilings are wagon roofs. The chancel has a sedilia with a painted wall, probably late 14th C.
There are two brasses in the north aisle. The font is octagonal from the 15th century with Shields bearing the instruments of the Passion.
The east window and the Lady Chapel window are by Philip Cole, former principal of Hastings School of Art. They replaced the original windows which were blown out by a bomb blast in 1943. See TQ8012 : Stained Glass in Conquest Hospital
There are eight bells in the tower.
In 2012 work started on a major restoration project on the church. The Philip Cole stained-glass windows were restored, a marble floor was fitted, and a large glass-walled multifunction room was installed at the rear of the nave. There are steps up to a Gallery with seating above. This provided flexible spaces for meetings, kitchen, toilets and new vestry. A bellringers platform was also installed with access via a spiral staircase. The organ was replaced with an electronic digital organ.
The church was closed for several months during this renovation, and reopened at Easter 2013.