Cold Overton

St John the Baptist in Cold Overton has installed Info Point to offer interpretation about its unique medieval wall paintings and resident bats.

Upon the plaster walls of the Lady Chapel you can find fragile sections of once hidden medieval paintings. These unique 12th century paintings survived the reformation. They were only discovered in the 1800s as part of church maintenance works.

St John’s has also been part of the National Lottery Heritage Funded ‘Bats in Churches’ project. It has been one of over 100 ancient churches to participate. As part of that legacy an Info Point has been installed in the church.

Perfect roosts

Bats and churches have been associated for centuries. As threatened mammals, bats are protected by law. As their natural habitats like ancient woodland become fewer and far between, they are increasingly seeking refuge in churches, complex and ancient buildings offering perfect roosting opportunities and surrounded by ideal foraging habitat.

St John’s supports maternity colonies of around 250 adult female soprano pipistrelles and about 20 adult female Natterer’s bats, both of which predominantly roost among the roof timbers of the nave. The droppings and urine from these colonies damage the wall paintings, add to the cleaning burden on the church volunteers. It puts some people off coming to church too.

Over a period of 5 years (2018 to 2023), under the guidance and supervision of experienced bat ecologists, three bat compartments were constructed within the nave roof for the soprano pipistrelle colony, which is responsible for most of the mess inside the church. Info Point tells this story to visitors on their mobile phones, and that of the wider church history, including the church’s medieval wall paintings.