The Church of St Nicholas is situated in a churchyard of approximately 1 acre in the Warwickshire village of Willoughby.

The earliest documentary reference to a church at Willoughby is dated 1221 and although there are records of matters relating to the church and gifts bestowed upon it through the 14th and 15th centuries, there is little mention of the form or fabric of the medieval building – a diocesan inventory in 1552/3 of fixtures and fitting was the first. Churchwarden records indicate major redevelopment took place from 1662 when the chancel was rebuilt. From 1700, when the parish register begins, documentation becomes more abundant and charts the ongoing internal and external rebuilding and renovation events through the 18th, 19th and into the 20th centuries.

Pre-Construct Archaeology Ltd Newark were commissioned by to undertake Historic Building Recording (HBR) of the church. The work was required in connection with an application for funding from the National Lottery Fund for the restoration of the Grade II Listed Building. The proposed restoration work led to a requirement for built heritage recording in order to fulfill a planning condition attached to Listed Building Consent and better understand the development of the church building. The work followed a methodology set out in a Written Scheme of Investigation (WSI).

The programme of built heritage recording was undertaken to Historic England Level 2 and included a laser scan of the church to provide a 3D model of the building, as well as a comprehensive photographic survey of the church in its present condition. This was supplemented by targeted documentary research intended to enable a better understanding of the church and its history.

The current HBR work involved compiling a detailed description of the church and an interpretation of spatial function and phasing based upon the information from the fieldwork, documentary research and analysis of the building fabric and the form of the building. The HBR work culminated in a description of the complex chronological development of the church.

The recording and research resulted in the preparation of a report that supported the Heritage Lottery Fund application, and the work was completed in September 2023.