St Stephens Church

St Stephen’s Church is the smallest of the surviving medieval churches in Ipswich. It was made redundant in 1978 and remained out of use until 1994 when it was restored to become the Tourist Information Centre, this closed in March 2020. During late 2022 Ipswich Borough Council assisted by the Suffolk Inclusive Growth Investment Fund conducted further renovations to convert the church into a 200 person live performance venue. It is operated by Brighten the Corners, a Community Interest Company who promote independent and emerging artists, it also operates as a record store and cafe.

A church of St Stephen is mentioned in Domesday, but the current building appears to date from the 14th and 15th centuries. During the 1980s archaeological work suggested that the church was not in exactly the place it is now. Shallow excavations in the nave found the foundations of a wall, running east-west about four feet north of the arcade of the south aisle. The nave of the Norman church may have extended across the present south aisle, and the tall south porch may contain the core of the original tower.

The south side of the church has an unusual feature on the third buttress from the east. This was once the private entrance to the Rush chapel. The stonework above the doorway is much eroded, but you may be able to make out the letter T for Thomas Rush (c.1487-1537). The detail was still visible in 1810 as D E Davey described the stonework as showing the Rush coat of arms – ‘on a fesse between 3 courses currant, 3 roundels’. He noted ‘two angels as supporters’ and ‘crest a horses head’. Thomas Rush served Henry VIII being sergeant at arms in 1508, and he was made Knight of the Sword at Anne Boleyn’s coronation in 1533.